New ultrasonic research is music to your mouth

We already know that we judge food’s satisfaction by its taste, aroma and texture but scientists at the University of Leeds have groundbreaking new research that identifies a hitherto unexplored dimension – ultrasound.

Malcolm Povey, Professor of Food Physics at the University of Leeds, is a world expert in ultrasound and conducted the trial with his colleagues at the Food Centre of Industrial Collaboration (CIC).

Through research commissioned by Worldwide Fruit, Professor Povey examined the crispy nature of various inherently crunchy foods – Jazz apples, premium thick-cut crisps and rich tea biscuits.

The taste panel findings revealed that the subjects recorded the apples as providing the most ‘enjoyment of biting’, achieving a top score of 7.8 on a scale of 0 to 10.

Interestingly, laboratory research using a texture analyser machine that ‘bites’ into food and records the sound in a matter of milliseconds showed that the apples produced far more ultrasound than the crisps or biscuits, measuring significantly higher amplitude (loudness).

Professor Povey said, “When it comes to the pleasure of eating, sound is as important as colour and taste but how our brain interprets this information is not yet understood.  When you munch a Jazz apple you are in fact creating massive peaks of ultrasound in your head that we experience as a vibration sensation.

“Ultrasound is sound that is beyond the range of normal human hearing.  Intriguingly, our brains automatically cut out the ultrasound when munching so as not to make ourselves deaf.

“Our group of subjects were culturally diverse but all were able to identify crispiness to the same degree.  It is highly probable that we are all genetically disposed to appreciating crispiness as a sign of freshness in food.”

Dr Graham Clayton, Food CIC Commercial Manager, said “Thanks to our world-renowned laboratories that house bespoke research equipment worth over £10 million, combined with Professor Povey’s insightfulness and creativity, we are in a unique position to undertake new research into this fascinating field that is worthy of significant funding.”

Gary Harrison, commercial manager for Worldwide Fruit said, “Jazz is a new, very crispy apple and its name was suggested by our Spalding based technical director Dr Drew Reynolds.  What we didn’t realise is that the sound that Jazz apples create in your head when eaten is quite unique, so the name is highly appropriate.  You could say that it’s music to your mouth!”

For Further information
http://www.foodchaincic.co.uk/ultrasound.html or www.jazzapples.co.uk