The Effect of Color on the Perception of Taste

When it comes to food, scientists have found that color really does influence a person’s perception of how a certain food tastes.  Without a doubt, the way a food looks can impact whether or not it is worth eating.  However, people also naturally make associations between color and the assumed flavor of a food.  For example, lemon can be associated with a sour lemon flavor as well as a sweet banana flavor, whereas red can be associated with a sweet cherry flavor or even a spicy pepper flavor.  Seeing a food that is colored a particular way causes us to make assumptions and expectations about how that food should taste even before we take a bite. 

Simply changing the color of a food can even cause people to perceive taste in a different way even without changing the flavor.  In an experiment by Hoegg and Alba (2007), participants were asked to taste test orange juice and identify their preferences, and the results showed that colors caused people to taste differences even when they didn’t exist.  The researchers looked at the effect of different characteristics on preference such as brand labels, color, and price, but they found that the color of a drink was the most influential on taste perception, even more so than information on the quality or the price of the product (Hoegg & Alba, 2007).  However, when they filled two cups with the same exact Tropicana orange juice, but dyed one darker with food coloring, participants reported a difference in taste between the two cups.  Simply put, “color dominated taste” (Hoegg & Alba, 2007). Yet, when the participants were given two cups of juice with the same color but containing different amounts of sugar, many participants were unable to taste the difference in sweetness.

Another prime example of the importance of color in relation to taste perception is the unsuccessful Heinz product, EZ Squirt ketchup, which came in various unappetizing colors including blue, green, purple, pink, orange, and teal (Jahnke 2007). These strangely colored products were designed to attract children; however, the fact that the taste didn’t match up with the color didn’t bode well with consumers.  Heinz later discontinued making the colorful ketchup because of the lack of popularity.   Clearly when our eyes see one thing and our taste buds experience another, it can be very misleading and confusing to our senses.

Nevertheless, there is logic behind our aversion to certain colors and our fondness for others – it was originally a method of survival. According to Jahnke’s article “The Influence of Color on Taste Perception,” the reason for our disliking for abnormally colored foods comes from our natural instinct to avoid rotten, spoiled, moldy, or poisonous foods, which often appear in colors of green, blue, or purple (Jahnke 2007).   Likewise, certain other colors can be attributed to more enticing flavors, such as bright red apples or an orange carrot.   Many food companies understand this and may add color to make their products look more appealing.  For example, butter is naturally white but is often died yellow exclusively for a more appetizing appearance (Jahnke 2007).

Overall, it can be concluded that our vision and color perception has a large impact on our ability to perceive taste.  Perhaps Dr. Seuss’s book Green Eggs and Ham has valid reasoning behind it after all!

Posted by: Katherine Travis

References:

Hoegg, J. & J. W. Alba. (2007). Taste perception: more than meets the tongue. Journal of Consumer Research.

Jahnke , M. (2007, March 19). The influence of color on taste perception. Interesting Thing of the Day. Retrieved on December 2, 2011, from http://itotd.com/articles/629/the-influence-of-color-on-taste-perception/.

University of Chicago Press Journals (2007, February 12). More than meets the tongue: color of a drink can fool the taste buds into thinking it is sweeter. ScienceDaily. Retrieved on December 2, 2011, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070212182136.htm.