What Does Your Food Sound Like?
Last year I posted about edible musical instruments, but it seems food science is itself branching out to include sonic stimuli as part of the gastronomic experience…
The Food of Love
A study conducted by Charles Spence, professor of experimental psychology at Oxford University, determined that the sonic landscape can in fact alter our perceptions of flavour as we eat. According to the Bittersweet Study, certain tones can alter how sweet we perceive the taste of our meal to be; that low brass sounds can make the taste more bitter, whereas high-pitched notes on bells or piano can enhance sweetness.
This may seem like a fairly academic discovery, but there are practical applications – for example, celebrity science chef Heston Blumenthal has incorporated audio into a seafood meal at his Fat Duck restaurant; having the sounds of waves breaking and seagulls flapping apparently makes the food seem fresher.
The Sound Of Marketing
The BBC report that one crisp company actually changed the material in their packaging to one that sounded crunchier; this sonic quality was then reflected in a perceived increase in freshness/crunchiness of the crisps themselves. The Oxford study surmised that if we can use audio tones to increase perceived sweetness, this would allow us to create foods that contain less sugar. Creating packaging that projects the correct tone in the right direction could be quite a technical challenge, though it could be possible with certain types of ready meals…