Consumer Perception and Acceptability of Tomato-based Fruit Pulp Mixes

This study determined the perception of consumers on the acceptability of tomato-based fruit pulp mixes with a view to establishing the commercial viability of the production process. Three product alternatives earlier established in the laboratory were considered for the study. Product A contained (33.3% tomato + 33.3% watermelon + 33.3% pineapple). Product B contained (50% tomato + 25% watermelon + 25% pineapple) while Product C contained (25% tomato + 25% watermelon + 50% pineapple pulps). The perceptions of the potential consumers and producers of the products were assessed using two sets of questionnaire. For the consumers, 265 respondents were purposively selected from southwestern Nigeria. Majority (72.0%) of the respondents would like to consume the tomato-based fruits pulp mixes if they are available in the market while 0.8% would not and 27.2% were not sure. Majority (68.7%) of the respondents would prefer Product A while 18.9% and 12% preferred products A and B respectively. Among the factors responsible for the consumers’ willingness to consume the products, high nutritional (3.58) and anti-oxidant (3.10) contents were rated significantly higher (P=0.05). The fruit companies were also willing to produce the product provided the raw materials are available.