Bell Flavors and Fragrances has announced the partnership of Bell’s Sensory Program with a local university to expand Bell’s consumer research with Generation Z and young millennial demographics.

Bell says its Sensory Program integrates the sensory experience with consumer needs to guide and validate creative development in innovation platforms. To accomplish this, Bell Sensory has 3 types of panels: a consumer panel who indicates their preferences and overall liking; a discrimination panel who determines if samples are same/different; and a trained panel who rates flavour/fragrance intensity. Bell’s Sensory panels are comprised of internal employees that are placed in appropriate panel(s) based on taste/smell acuity as well as their ability to describe and articulate the flavour/fragrance sensory experience.

“Historically, we conducted research with only Bell employees and had limited demographic reach,” said Karen Graves, the Sensory Director at Bell’s headquarters in Northbrook, who recently identified an opportunity to expand Bell’s consumer network. “Partnering with the university is our first step to enhance our consumer database. The Bell Sensory team piloted several online consumer research studies with the university and believes it is an effective venue to capture foundational insights for Bell and Bell’s customers. Graves added, “These surveys help us build a strong foundational knowledge base, which in turn narrows our focus to develop flavors and fragrances that best meet customers’ needs.”