The use of probiotic microorganisms is one of the most attractive options for human consumption due to their excellent functional properties. Considering that the development of new products has gained increasing importance, the aim of this work was to evaluate the acceptability of cereal bars with potentially probiotic microorganisms. A nine point structured hedonic scale was used containing the descriptive terms situated between "like extremely" and "dislike extremely". The attributes evaluated were aspect, texture, flavour and overall impression. A survey of the intention to consume the product was also carried out using a five point scale between "never consume" and "always consume". The sensory evaluation was carried out by a team of 36 untrained subjects: teachers, students and staff of the Federal University of Espírito Santo, of both sexes and aged between 20 and 40 years. The samples were presented to the panellists in random order in a monadic way, identified with 3-digit numbers. The various ways of incorporating Saccharomyces boulardii and Lactobacillus acidophilus into the cereal bars did not affect the structural and sensory quality of the product. The four cereal bar formulations presented good acceptability with respect to their aspect, texture, flavour and overall impression. The survey of the intention to consume revealed that over 60% of the tasters would always or often eat the product. The fact that the microorganisms were only viable for a short period of time, makes it necessary to carry out further studies aimed at increasing the stability of these microorganisms during the product shelf life.
Cereal bar; Probiotic; Saccharomyces boulardii; Lactobacillus acidophilus
