https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jfecs <p>The Journal of Consumer Sciences is an official publication of the South African Association of Family Ecology and Consumer Sciences (SAAFECS).</p> <p>The Journal of Consumer Sciences (JCS) publishes articles that focus on consumer experiences in different places and from different perspectives and methodological positions. The journal will consider research from within the fields of hospitality, consumer studies, consumer science, home economics, family studies, consumer education, consumer rights, and consumer behaviour. We also consider household and/or individual food security to be a facet of food consumerism and hence those working in this field should consider publishing in this journal. The journal also welcomes current consumer-related research that examines the impact of environmental, community, and sustainability issues.</p> South African Association for Family Ecology and Consumer Sciences en-US Journal of Consumer Sciences 3078-4050 Copyright is owned by the journal. https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jfecs/article/view/282694 <p>The current challenging economic environment and move towards healthier choices are causing behavioural changes among consumers as they are shifting towards more economical purchases and perceived healthier chocolate products. To match consumers’ recent expectations and stay competitive in the local confectionary market, the determination of sensory attributes of representative products by a trained panel provides key information for product development and marketing. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to determine the sensory profile of selected milk chocolates applying the RATA (rate-all-that-apply) methodology. A sweet aroma and flavour, cocoa powder and milky flavour as well as a creamy mouthfeel were moderately to very experienced for all the chocolate samples. The extracted factors for the milk chocolates included mouthfeel (texture), bitterness and sweetness. Chocolates 1 (artificially sweetened), 3 (imported indulgence) and 6 (everyday luxury) were identified as representative sensory profiles for milk chocolate as they varied between low, medium and high-intensity ratings for various attributes and could serve as a prototype for future product development. An understanding of the intensity of sensory attributes within this food category could assist the local confectionary market towards extending product offerings by including more economical and healthier products.</p> I Taljaard A Mielmann N le Roux Copyright (c) 2025 Journal of Consumer Sciences 2025-02-17 2025-02-17 10.4314/jfecs.v8i1.282694