Sensory profiles of three Nordic seaweeds following industrially relevant post-harvest processing

Journal article, 2026

Seaweed has potential to be a sustainable food ingredient, yet its sensory properties are poorly understood, and previous research has focused on species differences, with less attention given different post-harvest processing formats. To characterize sensory properties across different post-harvest processing formats, 15 seaweed ingredients were profiled by Quantitative Descriptive Analysis. These encompassed three Nordic-relevant species (Saccharina latissima, Palmaria palmata, and Ulva fenestrata) treated with different combinations of blanching, stabilization (flash-freezing, drying), and disintegration (re-hydrated flakes and powder as well as wet mince and paste). Data were analysed using ANOVA and Principal Component Analysis. Two previously unreported sensory attributes were consistently perceived across all P. palmata samples: a salmiac-like flavour and a tingling, carbonation-like mouthfeel. The blanched U. fenestrata samples differed from the non-blanched counterparts, with higher sulphurous odour and flour-like flavour notes and lower marine flavour, saltiness, sourness, and bitterness. No differences were detected between samples that were flash-frozen before drying and those that were dried directly after harvest, suggesting that intermediate frozen storage may be feasible in an industrial context. Samples differing in tissue disintegration (flaking/milling, mincing, and pasting to powder/paste) showed differences in texture- and structure-related attributes, with limited effects on flavour., the findings demonstrate that different processing formats are associated with differences in the sensory characteristics of seaweed ingredients, while flash-freezing before drying resulted in no detectable sensory differences in P. palmata and U. fenestrata, facilitating for more even feeding volumes into industry scale dryers.