Abstracts and Speaker Biographies - IFST Sensory Science Group Event: Changing Perspectives in Sensory Science – Past, Present

Thursday, 7 March, 2019 - 09:30 to 15:00, University of Reading

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Margaret Everitt BSc, FIFST

Margaret Everitt

Margaret’s passion for Sensory Science started in the mid-eighties while working as an undergraduate, on a lager development project for Federation Brewer, UK. It has been her vocation ever since.
Prior to starting her own consultancy in 2007 she developed and managed sensory departments for Walkers Snack Foods and SmithKline Beecham Consumer Healthcare (now Glaxo Smithkline), was Deputy Head of Consumer & Sensory Sciences at CCFRA (now Campden BRI) and Director of Consumer & Sensory services at Sensory Dimensions Ltd.

A founder member of IFST’s Sensory Science Group, she became its first chairman when it was inaugurated from a Special Interest Group to Professional Group status in October 1999. Up to her retirement in 2016, she remained an active member of the SSG committee specifically acting as coordinator of its Education & Accreditation working group.

She was a visiting lecturer at Nottingham and Bath Spa universities plus a regular speaker at National and International sensory science and product development conferences and workshops. She has been a contributing author for three Sensory Science books, the most recent being ‘Descriptive Analysis in Sensory Evaluation’ Wiley Blackwell, 2018. Margaret has been awarded a ‘Certificate of Achievement’ by the Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) for ‘significant contribution in the application of Consumer and Sensory Research’.

Abstract: Who’d be a Sensory Scientist?! 

Looking back over 30 years, Margaret will share some of her experiences of various events both general and individual, whilst working in the field of Sensory & Consumer Science. Often challenging, sometimes amusing, always stimulating, she will discuss how they influenced her during her career.

 

Dr Hal MacFie, Consultant, Hal MacFie Training Services

Dr. Hal MacFie is a statistician by training and spent his first 15 working years at the UK Meat Research Institute. Author of over 100 scientific publications and five edited books, he was Head of Consumer Science at the Institute of Food Research, Reading England, before becoming Director of the Institute. Dr. MacFie is now an independent consultant, Visiting Professor at Reading and Nottingham Universities.  He was European Editor of the scientific journal Food Quality and Preference for 20 years. He continues to develop a program of training courses in Sensory and Consumer Science to assist the career development of sensory professionals into more consumer-based activities. He consults for a variety of multinational companies on sensory and consumer science in New Product Development.

Abstract: Sensory Science has got to move on! 

Hal’s talk will reflect on some issues and problems that we continue to face as sensory scientists in the design, conduct of, and decision making from, sensory and consumer studies. The fundamental one is how to make the case for using sensory data in NPD when the evidence indicates that expectations play such a large role in determining repurchase. We will note some exciting developments in measurement and analysis. The closing message will be to continue to switch to the consumer in their natural environment as our basic unit of measurement.

 

Linda Lopez, Senior Sensory Manager EMEA, Mars Wrigley Confectionary 

Linda Lopez is leading the EMEA regional sensory team for Mars Wrigley Confectionery based in Slough. She has been working at Mars for 16 years in a variety of roles in R&D at local, regional and Global levels in both Petcare and Chocolate segments in UK and Germany. 

Abstract: “Neither hopelessly global nor needlessly local: how to strike the balance in a global sensory organization?”

In large multinational organisations, Sensory follows the business organisation structure. There are many models from centralised organisation looking for scale to decentralised organisation looking for speed and agility. In both models, consumer closeness is still defined as a key to success and sensory plays a key role in delivering this when it comes to product and pack execution.
Sitting in a regional hub and working in close collaboration with Global function is a balancing act. A key enabler for sensory at Mars Wrigley Confectionery has been the move to a common descriptive analysis methodology. With confectionery and the broader snacking category going through tremendous changes, there is a role to play in sensory to bring agility and foresight to the business.
 

 

Carey Jewitt, Professor of Digital Technology and Director UCL Knowledge Lab 

Carey Jewitt

Carey Jewitt is Professor of Digital Technology and Director of UCL Knowledge Lab, University College London. Her research interests center on multimodal and multisensorial approaches to digital interaction, and methodological innovation. Carey is PI of the IN-TOUCH project, an ERC Consolidator Award, which explores the social implications of digitally mediated touch for communication.

Abstract: Researching sensorial Futures

Carey will introduce the multimodal and sensory tools and techniques that they are using in the IN-TOUCH project to explore the ways in which digitally mediated touch is evolving as a form of communication. Carey will illustrate the use of the concept of Socio-technical imaginaries, and our application of a diverse range of methods from across design, social science, and human computer interaction to provide ways into people’s visions for touch communication, including rapid prototyping, cultural probes, mood boards, situated interventions, and multimodal and sensorial video re-enactments. Carey will conclude with some speculative thoughts on how this field/area of expertise might develop.

 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Delegate Information: Please follow this link for more information on Transport and Travel including the car park information. If arriving by car please make sure that you print off the parking permit and display clearly in your vehicle.

Directions & Maps: Please see the campus map for entrance to the university, the car park and venue: Meadow Suite, Park House. See here for a more detailed map of where the venue is situated.

 

13/02/2019
Car Parking form - to disply in cars.pdf
13/02/2019
Delegate Information pack.docx
13/02/2019
Meadow Suite map.pdf
13/02/2019
Venue Reading 3D Map.pdf