Understanding consumer physiological and emotional responses to food products using electroencephalography (EEG)

A good understanding of the physiological and emotional response of consumers to food products is essential for success in food product design and food service. In the field of food research, many traditional sensory measurements, such as name, preference, acceptance, liking and hedonic valuation, have been used for the evaluation of consumer feelings and preferences. Recently, to enhance this understanding, the electrophysiological method electroencephalography (EEG) was applied to measure brain activity, which encompasses the dipole rotation from sensory perceptions to the emotional response of the consumer. Therefore, this review focuses on the principles and applications of EEG in food research. The EEG technique measures the electric potential at the scalp during stimulation with pictures, sounds, odour, and tastes, turning the response into a signal that can be used to explain perceptive, attentive, or emotional processes. It has been suggest that EEG can be used to evaluate consumer preferences for food associated with hedonic valuation. EEG is a useful technique to support traditional sensory measurements, since it directly measures the implicit physiological and emotional responses of consumers. Moreover, it provides a deep understanding of the consumer's cortical processes related to food, which is useful to match consumer demand in food product development and service.