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# Statistical analysis correlates flavor compounds with citric fruit flavor notes
- URL: https://www.flavorist.com/statistical-analysis-of-citric-fruit-flavors/
- Published: 2024-04-12T21:51:28.000Z
- Updated: 2026-01-24T21:29:55.000Z
- Author: Editor

A group of food scientists at the University of Florida Department of Food Science and Nutrition led by Dr. Yu Wang reported that certain flavor compounds/non-volatiles are well correlated with citric flavor notes commonly encountered in mandarin and oranges.

They used trained sensory panelists to evaluate flavor notes, and instruments like GS-MS to identify flavor compounds found in citric fruits like mandarin and oranges, and then conducted an statistical analysis of citric flavor notes with a type of multivariate analysis called Principal Component Analysis to correlate the flavor compounds identified with GS-MS and other instruments with flavor attributes.

They found

> "Sugars were highly correlated with the **sweet** attribute while flavonoids and limonoids were highly correlated with the **bitter** attribute. Organic acids showed a strong correlation with the sour attribute and a contribution to the **citrusy** attribute. Terpenes were highly associated with the **terpene-like** attribute, while octanal, decanal, ethyl hexanoate, and ethyl octanoate were found to be highly correlated with the **citrusy** attribute. The correlations between compounds of linalool, citronellol, and 1-octanol and the **fruity/floral** attribute were also observed."  

Source:

[*ACS Food Sci. Technol.* 2021, 1, 11, 2076–2085](https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.1c00304?ref=flavorist.com)