Original burger (traditional) or burger with mushroom addition? A social representation approach to novel foods

Author(s)

Patinho, Iliani ^[1] ; Saldana, Erick ^[2] ; Selani, Miriam Mabel ^[3] ; Bortoluzzi Teixeira, Ana Clara ^[1] ; Menegali, Beatriz Schmidt ^[1] ; Merlo, Thais Cardoso ^[1] ; Dario Rios-Mera, Juan ^[4] ; Dargelio, Mariana D. B. ^[1] ; Rodrigues, Heber ^{[5, 6]} ; Contreras-Castillo, Carmen J. ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Agroind Alimentos & Nutr LAN, Escola Super Agr Luiz de Queiroz ESALQ, Piracicaba, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Nacl Moquegua UNAM, Fac Ingn Agroind, Moquegua - Peru

^[3] Univ Fed Sao Carlos, Ctr Ciencias Nat, Campus Lagoa do Sino, Rod Lauri Simoes de Barros, Buri, SP - Brazil

^[4] Univ Nacl San Luis Gonzaga Ica UNICA, Fac Ingn Pesquera & Alimentos, Ica - Peru

^[5] Plumpton Coll, Ditchling Rd, Brighton BN7 3AE, E Sussex - England

^[6] UK Ctr Excellence Wine Res, Ditchling Rd, Brighton BN7 3AE, E Sussex - England

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Food Research International; v. 147, SEP 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Currently, consumers' interest in healthy products has attracted the attention of academia and the meat industry, which has focused mainly on incorporating ingredients with healthier properties. In this context, the aim of this study was to investigate the social representation of original burgers and burgers with mushroom addition considering different sexes and body mass indexes (BMIs) of individuals. Thus, 209 Brazilians answered a word association task followed by a word classification based on their importance and valence for original burgers and burgers with the addition of mushrooms. To obtain the structure of social representation, the words were positioned into four distinct zones based on their frequency of elicitation and importance. Also, the polarity index was used to give a connotation to the words. Three groups of consumers were identified. The first group (consumers with class-1 obesity of both sexes) associated the original burger with positive categories (cheese, juicy, seasoned, food, tasty, joy, salad and delicious). The second one (female consumers with pre-obesity and class-1 obesity) associated the burger with the addition of mushrooms with the elements price, different, vegetarian, flavor, gourmet and healthy. Finally, the third group (men and women for both stimuli and with a wide range of BMI) characterized burgers with sensory attributes, feelings and moments of consumption. In conclusion, the social representation of the original burger and the burger with the addition of mushrooms differed among consumers, suggesting that the main associations can be the main motivations for the consumption of a certain product. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 19/26026-2 - Influence of ultimate pH on the physicochemical and biochemists parameters associated tenderness of the meat of Bos indicus cattle
• Grantee: Iliani Patinho
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 17/26667-2 - Beef quality in Bos indicus cattle: biological markers for meat attributes in different ultimate pH ranges
• Grantee: Carmen Josefina Contreras Castillo
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants