A taste for science

A taste for science

From Our Changing World by RNZ

April 27, 2026 · 28 min · Episode 413

About this episode

This episode explores the science behind food preferences and the testing that influences what appears on supermarket shelves.

The food you see on the supermarket shelves doesn't end up there by accident. It's often been rigorously tested for likeability. This week on Our Changing World, Liz Garton finds out about the science behind those decisions, given that individual taste can be very varied. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more. Learn more: Export markets are a key consumer group. Look at who’s eating our food with this story from RNZ’s Farah Hancock. Our Changing World looked at how science can help pair foods with the School of Chemical Science at the University of Auckland Finding a Psa-V-tolerant golden kiwifruit was one of the success stories from the Consumer and Health sciences team. Claire Concannon looked at the ongoing efforts to prevent the disease from getting to the South Island . Guests: Christina Roigard, Science Team Leader – Sensory & Consumer Health, New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science Limited David Jin, Scientist, Health and Consumer Science Team - New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science Limited Dr Roger Harker, Principal scientist - Health and Consumer Science Team - New Zealand Institute for…

People in this episode

Host: Liz Garton

Guests: Christina Roigard, David Jin, Dr Roger Harker

Topics covered

  • food science
  • consumer preferences
  • sensory analysis
  • kiwifruit research
  • health sciences

Keywords

  • food testing
  • taste preferences
  • consumer science
  • kiwifruit
  • health and consumer science

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science Limited, School of Chemical Science at the University of Auckland, RNZ

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