Use of a test of perceived authenticity to trigger affective responses when testing food

Food developers frequently check the liking for their recipes by asking consumers to state their preferences. This approach is often criticised for the lack of commitment of the participants and the artificiality of the hedonic response. This study tested whether an authenticity test could also be used as an alternative to a traditional hedonic test when evaluating two brands of salted crackers. A group of 244 women were interviewed according to an authenticity test design. A negative affective attitude toward the samples to be evaluated was induced by telling the participants the following upsetting story: “We want to investigate the possibility of replacing the genuine version of our salted crackers brand by a copy manufactured with low-cost ingredients. Of course, the retail price will be the same, even though the ingredients are cheaper”. The participants were then asked to say whether each presented sample (six repetitions of each product) was a genuine one or a copy. At the end of the session, subjects received a new pair of samples and were asked to say which one they preferred. Responses to this preference question were compared to those obtained with a traditional hedonic test run in Central Location Test conditions. Results of the authenticity method show that overall authenticity responses are closely linked to preferences. Besides, these paired authenticity/preference data provide insightful information on the diversity in consumer perception.