The aroma is one of the most important attributes of food and is directly linked to the quality of the product and the consumer’s acceptance.
Aromas are detected by olfactory epithelium in the upper part of the nasal cavity. For any food to have aroma, it must be volatile, but volatile substance can be detected in very small amounts.
Aroma compounds have small molecules with a molecular weight generally lower than 400 g/mol.
The aroma molecules may be transported directly into the nose by sniffing a food, or they may be released from a food during mastication and carried into the nose retronasally.
Often the terms flavor and aroma are used interchangeably. Food flavor and aroma are difficult to measure and difficult to get people to agree on.
Natural aromas are isolated directly from natural source plant or animal, Natural identical aromas are produced synthetically, but they are chemically identical to their natural counterparts.
Article aromas are also produced synthetically.
Aroma is a valuable index of quality. A food often with smell bad before it looks bad, and old meat can be easily detected by its smell.
Proteins particularly affect aroma perception, due to interactions with aroma related compounds.
Lipids greatly influence flavor through their effect in perception (mouthfeel, taste and aroma), flavor generation, and stability, whereas carbohydrates tend to increase retention in the matrix.
Science of aroma