The impact of variations in flavour compounds on meat acceptability: a comparison of Japanese and New Zealand consumers John Prescott a, *, Owen Young b , Lynda O’Neill b a Sensory Science Research Centre, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand b AgResearch, Hamilton, New Zealand Received 14 August 2000; received in revised form 28 December 2000; accepted 30 January 2001 Abstract Sheepmeat consumption is uncommon in many Asian countries, whose consumers often complain about the unacceptability of the sheepmeat odour/flavour. Volatile branched chain fatty acids (BCFAs), present in all fatty tissue, have been implicated as the cause of such flavours, as has skatole, which originates from pastoral diets. To determine the relative importance of these com- pounds to the acceptability of sheepmeat for the Japanese consumer, cooked lean beef samples containing added BCFAs and ska- tole at three levels (none, low, high), in factorial combinations, were rated for liking by consumers in Japan and New Zealand, and by a trained descriptive analysis panel in terms of aftertaste, barnyard odour and flavour, grassy/pastoral odour and flavour, milky odour and flavour, sheepmeat odour and flavour, sour odour and flavour, and sweet odour and flavour. The consumer and analy- tical data were analysed using internal preference mapping, which gave a two-dimensional solution. The most important preference dimension was clearly related to the presence of BCFAs, high levels of which were also associated with typical barnyard/milky/sour/ sheepmeat flavours. Consumer preference scores were clustered around those products containing the zero level of BCFAs. The presence of different levels of skatole, and the associated grassy and sweet flavours, was less important in explaining variation in consumer responses. ANOVA on the consumer data also confirmed the influence of BCFAs on liking, particularly for the Japanese consumers. # 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Sheepmeat; Acceptability; Branched chained fatty acids; Skatole; Japan; New Zealand; Consumers; Liking 1. Introduction Sheepmeat (lamb, mutton) is widely consumed throughout the world, the level of consumption benefit- ing in some cultures from the prohibitions that apply to the consumption of beef or pork. New Zealand is the world’s largest exporter of sheepmeat, and hence the acceptance of sheepmeat in international markets is an important economic issue. However, compared with other markets, for example, Europe, exports of sheep- meat to most countries in Asia are relatively low. Thus, in 1998/1999, exports of New Zealand sheepmeat to the whole north Asian region (comprising Japan, Korea, China, and Taiwan) represented less than 20% (on a weight basis) of that exported to the European Union (Meat New Zealand, 2000). It has been suggested that the low consumption of sheepmeat in many Asian countries results from the poor acceptability of sheepmeat odour, especially dur- ing cooking, and of its flavour while eating. For exam- ple, the hedonically negative word soo, meaning sweaty or sour, is used in China to describe the cooking odour of sheepmeat (Wong, Johnson, & Nixon, 1975). There is no evidence that consumers in Asian markets perceive odour or flavour qualities that more frequent sheepmeat consumers do not. Rather, it is likely that in countries whose diet includes sheepmeat, a long history of con- sumption promotes a preference for the same flavour qualities that are disliked by those who do not regularly consume sheepmeat (see Crandall, 1985; Pliner, 1982). Nevertheless, both highly developed (e.g. Japan) and developing and increasingly affluent (e.g. China) coun- tries in Asia represent significant marketing opportu- nities for sheepmeat exporters, particularly if the source of any sensory qualities that have a negative impact on consumer acceptability can be identified and modified. 0950-3293/01/$ - see front matter # 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S0950-3293(01)00021-0 Food Quality and Preference 12 (2001) 257–264 www.elsevier.com/locate/foodqual * Corresponding author. Tel.: +64-3-479-9073; fax: +64-3-479- 7567. E-mail address: john.prescott@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (J. Prescott).