FACTORS INFLUENCING THE QUALITY OF MAYONNAISE: A REVIEW zyx L. J. HARRISON and F. E. CUNNINGHAM zyxw Department of Animal Sciences and Industry Kansas State University Manhattan, Kansas zyxw 66506 Accepted for Publication: November 3, 1983 ABSTRACT zyxw Food emulsions are an important part of the food industry. Use of one such emulsion, mayonnaise, has grown enormously since it first was produced commercially in the early zyxwv 1900’s. A number of factors influence the mayon- naise emulsion. These factors that have been discussed are: the egg yolk, the relative volume of the phases, the emulsifying effect of mustard, the method of mixing, water hardness, and viscosity. Numerous research efforts have shown thesefactors to be of great significance in the formation and stability of a high quality mayonnaise. INTRODUCTION Food emulsions are a significant part of the food industry. Milk, a natural oil-in-water emulsion, has long been an important and nutritious part of the human diet (Graf and Bauer zyxwv 1976). As food scientists discovered and studied other natural emulsions, man-made food emulsions began to appear. Cake batters (Shepard and Yoell 1976), ice cream (Berger 1976), margarine (Brown 1949; Weiss 1970), and meat products such as sausage and frankfurters (Schut 1976) are just a few examples. Another man-made food emulsion, whose production and consumption have grown rapidly, is mayonnaise. The legends connected with the invention of mayonnaise have been described by Robinson (1924). Although there is a divergence of opinion as to its origin, mayonnaise has been known for many centuries (Robinson 1924). From 1917 to 1927, economic and industrial changes brought about shifts in American dietary habits and mayonnaise became a diet staple involving a large scale industry (Epstein 1937). Finberg (1955) estimated that approximately 39 Contribution No. 84-88-J. Department of Animal Sciences and Industry, Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Manhattan, KS 66506 Journal of Food Quality 8 (1985) 1-20. All Rights Reserved zyxw tc) Copyright I985 by Food & Nutrition Press, Inc., Westport, Connecticut 1