New Nutriswiss sensory lab provides optimal conditions for tasting panels
Nutriswiss has future-proofed its sensory evaluation capabilities with its new, state-of-the-art sensory laboratory by guaranteeing adherence to the highest quality standards.
Following successful certification in accordance with the current FSSC 22000 standard for food safety management systems in the food and feed industry and receipt of all the necessary permits from the municipality of Lyss, Nutriswiss’s newly established sensory laboratory officially commences operations at the beginning of May.
Laboratory manager Michèle Béatrice Suter said she is delighted to offer her tasting panel optimal conditions.
She said the new facilities allows evaluation of samples under completely neutral conditions.
“All potential interferences, such as external odours, are entirely eliminated,” she added.
The sensory lab has been designed and equipped to comply with the latest recommendations of the German Society for Fat Science (DGF). In planning and implementing the project, Suter and her team were also advised by the Food Sensory Research Group at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) in Wädenswil. This group also trains assessors for the Swiss Olive Oil Panel (SOP). The sensory panel members at Nutriswiss are selected and trained according to DIN EN ISO 8586:2023-09 and DIN ISO 3972:2013-12.
The new laboratory is divided into a preparation kitchen, equipped with refrigeration and heating cabinets for sample storage, preparation and pre-tempering, and the actual tasting lab.
The lab has eight individual tasting booths, which are completely separated to prevent external influences between panelists. Each booth is equipped with a personal water bath to temper samples to a precise temperature. The rooms are air-conditioned and ventilated with filtered, odour-free air.
Special lighting can simulate different colour temperatures to ensure consistent illumination and eliminate the effects of daylight or other visual stimuli. Red light can also be used to eliminate colour bias in product perception.
Oils and fats are now tasted twice a day by panels of up to eight people. Nutriswiss is currently developing a training concept to continuously improve the panelists’ ability to detect off-flavours and quality markers and to train new sensory specialists.
Collagen peptides from neighbouring Swiss company NutriFine are also evaluated in the laboratory.
Shared use of the facility creates synergies in costs, organisation and knowledge transfer within the Centravo Group. In the future, tastings with external partners such as customers and user groups will also be possible.
The sensory lab is linked to the recently implemented Limsophy LIMS system from AAC Infotray, allowing tasting results to be directly linked to the corresponding sample and batch numbers and all associated analytical data.
CEO Martin Mäder emphasised the importance of the project for Nutriswiss: “Refined edible oils in particular should have a neutral taste. Sensory evaluation is therefore a key element of our quality assurance and also helps us to systematically improve storage stability. The new laboratory enables the best possible sensory evaluation. Only with precise, unaltered analysis results can we guarantee high-quality oils and fats and continuously optimise our processes and products.”
