Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to determine acceptability and preference of five flavors of soy nuts: candy coated, yogurt, salted, unsalted, and unsalted. The consumption of soy foods has been associated with many health benefits. Currently, soy nuts are marketed as a snack food item. Since college students have strong food preferences, acceptance of soy nuts by this population would be a way of incorporating soy into their diet. Texture, appearance, and flavor of a 5 gram portion of each flavor of soy nuts were evaluated by 616 (219 males, 397 females) untrained college students who were between 17 and 30 years of age. The products were rated on a nine point hedonic scale, with 1 being "dislike extremely" and 9 being "like extremely". Overall acceptability of the nuts was based on average ratings obtained for appearance, texture and flavor. An analysis of variance was conducted. Candy coated and yogurt soy nuts received high ratings i.e. "liked very much" and "liked moderately" for overall acceptability by college students. Sour cream, salted, and unsalted followed with lesser ratings ranging from "like slightly" and "neither like nor dislike". Unlike gender, age influenced college student's overall acceptability of soy nuts.
