Chemical Analysis
The chemical analysis covers the following key areas:
Nutritional Content
Protein, fat, and carbohydrates.
The water content can vary significantly between products. Thinner fries tend to have a lower water content. Fat levels also vary.
Fatty Acid Distribution
The distribution of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids, broken down into about 30 different components.
The proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids varies greatly. These include essential fatty acids like linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid, which the body cannot produce on its own.
Sugar
Total sugar and the breakdown of sucrose, lactose, glucose, maltose, and galactose.
Salt
Since the fries are manually salted after cooking, it's difficult to draw conclusions from the variation in salt levels.
Heavy Metals
Arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury.
Acrylamide
Acrylamide levels vary widely between fries. The variation in acrylamide levels is likely due to differences in frying temperatures and times, as well as the type of potatoes used.
MOSH and MOAH
Mineral oils (fossil-based oils) with known negative health effects.
Sensory Test
The sensory tests are conducted by an independent sensory agency. Experienced taste experts are recruited to taste and evaluate the fries.
The fries are served freshly prepared, directly from the fryer at each restaurant.
The panel rates the following main aspects based on "preference":
- Taste
- Texture
- Aroma
- Appearance
They also assess the following specific taste characteristics based on "balance":
- Flavor intensity
- Saltiness
- Bitterness
- Crispiness
- Thickness
- Color
Scoring
The test results are scored on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest. In the sensory analysis, taste is weighted at 40%, texture at 30%, appearance at 20%, and aroma at 10%. In the chemical analysis, only total fat content and the distribution of different fatty acids (saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated) are scored.
In the overall rating, the sensory results were weighted at 75%, and fat content at 25%.