Standard No.:	GB/T 43396-2023
English Name:	Sensory analysis—Guidance on substantiation for sensory and consumer product claims
Chinese Name:	感官分析 产品感官宣称证实导则
Chinese Classification:	X04    Basic standards and general methods
Professional Classification:	GB    National Standard
Source Content Issued by:	SAMR; SAC
Issued on:	2023-11-27
Implemented on:	2023-11-27
Status:	valid
Target Language:	English
File Format:	PDF
Word Count:	13500 words
Translation Price(USD):	400.0
Delivery:	via email in 1~3 business day

GB/T 43396-2023 Sensory analysis - Guidance on substantiation for sensory and consumer product claims 1 Scope This document gives guidelines for substantiating sensory claims on food and non-food products and their packaging for advertising consumer-packaged goods. This document differentiates sensory claims from other types of claims. It provides classification and examples of the different types of sensory claims. It highlights special issues associated with testing to substantiate sensory claims. This document is applicable to substantiation for sensory and consumer product claims. This document does not apply to: ——specific or detailed requirements for different test methods that are used to support sensory claims; ——factual claims regarding a product’s country of origin, ingredients, processing and nutritional components; ——factual claims regarding the technical features of the product; ——claims regarding a product’s health, medical or therapeutic benefits, physiological effects, structure or function benefits when consumed or applied to the human body; ——claims based on instrumental assessments of the attributes or performance of a product (i.e. instrumental assessments; in this case, test methods are used in which no human participant evaluates the product and/or no human participant provides a response to a product); ——claims about services (e.g. a house cleaning service, airline services, automobile services); ——claims about large/slow moving consumer goods (autos, refrigerators, stoves, etc.). 2 Normative references The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies. ISO 5492 Sensory analysis - Vocabulary Note: GB/T 10221-2021, Sensory analysis - Vocabulary (ISO 5492:2021, IDT) 3 Terms and definitions For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO 5492 and the following apply. ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses: ——ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp; ——IEC Electropedia: available at http://www.electropedia.org/. 3.1 sensory claim advertising message to the consumer about a product’s sensory attributes (e.g. “now with roasted flavour”), its functionality (e.g. “removes grease”) or performance (e.g. “keeps breath fresh longer”) and/or the consumers’ affective (e.g. “consumers prefer Brand X”) or perceptual responses (e.g. “makes your skin look younger”) to it before, during or after use Examples: Sensory characteristics such as “has a toasty flavor”, functional characteristics such as “removes grease stains”, performance characteristics such as “keeps breath fresher longer”, emotional responses such as “consumer preferred”, perceptual responses such as “makes your skin look younger”. Note: A sensory claim can be any such message that is used in an advertisement, in any format. This advertising message is made in a public forum. It can appear on the product package, in print or in the media in any format (electronic, television or video). The aim of a sensory message is to inform the potential user/buyer of the product about the product’s sensory characteristics, or to highlight what they will perceive while using, or after using, the product. This type of advertising message is to make the potential user/buyer aware of these attributes with the intent to influence purchase, consumption or usage. 3.2 affective claim message about a user’s/potential user’s hedonic and/or emotional responses before, during or after using a product Note: Responses include a consumer’s hedonic, attitudinal, cognitive and/or emotional reactions elicited by the product before, during and/or after the use of a product. The most common hedonic responses measured are liking or preference. Attitudinal responses can be that the user is more willing to purchase the product in the future or that the consumer will agree to a statement that the product has the highlighted attribute or provides the specified affective experience. 3.3 perception/performance claim message about a characteristic describing the perception elicited by the product or its intended effect Example: Product XXX is thick (perception) and leaves no residue (performance). 3.4 puffery extremely broad, vague and subjective statement that is so exaggerated that it is not likely to be believed and is not testable from the standpoint of measurement operations and/or from a practical standpoint 3.5 equivalence claim message provided when two or more products are stated to be the same in one or several features 3.6 unsurpassed claim message provided when a product is stated not to be exceeded by any other product in one or several features 3.7 superiority claim specific type of comparative claim that states a higher level of a product/performance attribute or liking/preference relative to one or several products 3.8 risk combination of the probability of an occurrence of harm and the severity of that harm Note: The sensory scientist and the organization’s stakeholders should consider the risks associated with making a claim based on sensory testing. Risk refers to the chances/likelihood that making the claim results in negative consequences. These negative consequences can be as ill-defined as consumers making negative posts on social media, or comments within the community of sensory, marketing or legal communities, or extend to a challenge from a competitor, or action taken by a self-policing, regulatory or governmental agency. Risks should be identified, discussed and understood before the claim is made publicly. [SOURCE: ISO/IEC Guide 51:2014, 3.9, modified] 3.9 sensory analysis methods set of widely used, science-based methods of sensory analysis, including descriptive, discrimination and performance evaluations Note: Internal validity and laboratory-type controls are the hallmarks of sensory test methods, especially when the goal is to measure products’ attributes. In both product-focused and participant-focused sensory tests, blinding the product’s brand identity and obtaining independent judgements are best practices. Test method sensitivity, effect size, and the number and type of assessors are all considerations in sensory test methods (see ISO 6658). 3.10 consumer methods range of consumer quantitative product testing methods used by most practising sensory/consumer professionals engaged in product testing, which includes both affective testing and perception/performance testing 3.11 representative sample of consumers set of people, being a smaller group than the larger population from which it is drawn, used in a test, which provides a test result that covers the range of responses that would be obtained if the entire larger population had been tested Note: In consumer testing, where affective responses are recorded, the general requirement for sampling participants is usually the following: a) include a large enough number of consumers in order to cover the variability in affective responses present in the larger population; b) use qualified consumers that actually use or consume the product, purchase the product or are product-concept acceptors; c) have a sampling plan that includes relevant demographic, geographic, behavioural or psychological variables. 3.12 representative sample of products set of products, drawn from the available products in the marketplace, used in a test when the desired claim is about a product’s sensory attributes, performance attributes or the hedonic responses it elicits Note: A recommended practice for researchers is to obtain products to test from a retail channel, after being factory-made and having gone through the usual distribution channels. The principle is that the products that serve in a claims test should be representative of what the consumer would get if they purchased the product in the marketplace. It is also a recommended good practice to include more than one lot, one batch or one factory in the product selection whenever there is a need to include the variability normally present in the product. Bench samples or prototypes developed before scaling up, distribution and market launch can be used to support a claim. If bench prototypes are tested and the results used for claims support, there should be some evidence to show the comparability of the bench sample and the in-market product. The number of products tested and the product variables included in the product selection depends on the extent to which the advertising message conveys that it applies to the entire set of products consumers would use. 3.13 objective test result test result obtained by using procedures generally accepted in scientific fields as providing a result that did not depend on the experimenter’s expectations or interference (and is verifiable) Note: In objective studies, data are collected without interference by the experimenter, and the study design allows more than one possible outcome. Respondents in such studies also do not have information about the underlying study objectives that might affect their responses. Objective results come from studies that do not depend on the experimenter’s or test administrator’s opinions or desired outcomes, and where the relevant variables are included, best practices are followed and the results are not a foregone conclusion. Objective research results are usually obtained across different studies and can be corroborated with other related studies or converging test results. 4 General considerations To substantiate a sensory claim, the following considerations should be taken into account. a) Sensory claims are based on the recorded responses from the perceiver’s direct experience with a product. b) The product claims are designed to inform the audience of potential buyers about the product characteristics, differentiate the product from its competitors and influence the buying decision. c) Claims directed at children or children’s products are heavily regulated in different countries and are quite restricted. d) What makes a claim supported by evidence is the proper use of scientific methods along with the weight and relevance of the supporting data. Note 1: Researchers in companies usually test their products frequently. If there is frequent testing of a product, there is often a set of other results against which a single test result can be compared. The support for the claim is stronger when the multiple test results converge. A single test result can be used as the basis of a claim if it is within the range of previously obtained results. If there are no previous tests and no previous test results, other technical information or evidence that is consistent with the single finding can strengthen the support for the claim. Note 2: If a vendor or testing organization performs the test and has no history of previous results and a comparison cannot be made, then it is incumbent upon the company making the claim to establish the risk in making a claim based on a single test. e) Sensory claims can be based on standardized, scientifically based measurements of: ——the properties of products/performance established via sensory analysis; ——users’ liking, preferences, feelings, attitudes, or perception of product properties or performance. f) Claims requiring a clinical study are defined by the Helsinki document: a clinical trial is “any systematic evaluation of medicinal products or devices in human subjects whether in patients or non-patient volunteers,