Identification of compounds that contribute to aroma liking of whole wheat bread

Whole wheat bread is recommended as part of a healthy diet, but its consumption remains below suggested levels, partly due to poor flavor quality. The influence of aroma compound compositions on bread preference was examined. Targeted gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry flavoromics analysis was applied to identify compounds that impacted the aroma liking of whole wheat bread. The chemical profiles for 39 reported odorants across 16 whole wheat bread samples were modeled against consumer liking scores (n = 97) with good fit (R²Y = 0.886) and predictive ability (Q² = 0.758). The most predictive and positively correlated compounds of aroma liking were identified as 4-hydroxy-2,5-dimethyl-3(2H)-furanone, 3-hydroxy-2-methyl-4-pyrone, 2,3-butanedione, 1-furfuryl pyrrole, furfuryl alcohol, and 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline. Aroma recombination testing further confirmed that the addition of these compounds to the bread resulted in a significantly preferred sample compared to the control (p = 0.002). In summary, 6 out of 39 odors detected in whole wheat bread were reported to impact liking and provide a basis to further optimize product acceptance and promote consumption.