Acceptability of Tomatoes Defined by Sensory Attributes and Consumer Segments

In three consecutive years tomatoes of different varieties were grown in the greenhouse in Grossbeeren near Berlin. Sensory tests were conducted to characterize the sensory properties of the tomato fruits by means of a quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA) with a trained panel and also by consumer acceptance tests. Only few tomato attributes correlated with the acceptance scores averaged over all consumers. A cluster analysis, using the results of the consumer tests, was performed. It led to three clusters of consumers, which could by distinguished clearly by their different and partly contradicting liking of product attributes.