Can plate colour really affect our sense of taste?

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Can plate colour really affect our sense of taste?

Thanks for asking.

Surely nothing affects taste other than what you actually put in your mouth, right? Well, actually, no, that's not true. At least according to a study published in December 2022 in Food Quality and Preference. The researchers behind that found that the colour of our dishware might influence our perception of taste. And it's not the first study of its kind. I'm going to tell you about other similar ones in just a moment. That's crazy. How did these studies work then? Well, the Food Quality and Preference study was conducted by researchers at the University of Portsmouth. They gathered 47 students to participate, splitting them into two groups, picky and non-picky eaters. During the experiment, snacks were served in bowls of three different colours, red, white and blue. And the surprising finding was that crisps served in blue or red bowls were rated as saltier compared to those served in white bowls. And guess who noticed the biggest change in their taste sensations? That's right, the picky eaters.

But it doesn't stop there. Between the blue and red bowls, crisps served in the blue ones were deemed more desirable, while ones served in the red bowls made participants less likely to reach for more. Commenting on this, the researchers noted that in the UK, salty snacks are often sold in blue packaging. And the team believed that this might explain some of the saltiness findings.

What other studies have been done in this area then? Well, previous research has shown that food colour can have a significant psychological impact on people, which goes some way towards explaining why manufacturers use so many artificial colourings in their products. An article published in Flavour Journal in 2015 said that colour is the single most important product intrinsic sensory cue when it comes to setting people's expectations regarding the likely taste and flavour of food and drink. And research published in the Journal of Sensory Studies in 2012 looked into how mug colour can affect our enjoyment of hot drinks. Interestingly, hot chocolate was found to taste best when sipped from an orange cup, while white cups were associated with a less satisfying flavour. What's the point of all this research? Well, the main significance is that it could help combat nutritional deficiencies in picky eaters. Dr Lorenzo Stafford is an olfactory researcher who was involved in the University of Portsmouth study, and he's gone on record saying, if you wanted to encourage a picky eater to try more vegetables, well known to be viewed as bitter, you could attempt to serve them on a plate or bowl that is known to increase sweetness. He went on to say, through further research, we could determine ways to help positively affect a person's diet and as a result, their mental and physical health. There you have it.