A SYSTEMATIC APPROACH TO PREDICTION OF SNACK CHIP ACCEPTABILITY UTILIZING DISCRIMINANT FUNCTIONS BASED ON INSTRUMENTAL MEASUREMENTS

To determine quality characteristics of snack chips, six snack chip prototypes containing cowpea flour, cornmeal, wheat flour and cornstarch (26, 34, and 42%) were formulated. Desirable characteristics as determined by three focus groups were a golden yellow color in a thin, smooth corn-chip form with crunchy or crispy texture, greaseless or dry mouthfeel and salty corn flavor. Chips were undesirable if brown-colored, thick, oily or greasy, had either hard or crumbly texture, and had bland, fishy, or burnt flavors. In consumer acceptance tests, commercial products were found to be more appealing than the experimental products. A discriminant model based on instrumental measurements of color and texture from 11 snack chip samples (six prototypes and five commercial samples) correctly grouped 100% of the acceptable and 90% of unacceptable products.