Exploring Sweet-Liker Status as a Potential Driver for Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Acceptability: Insights for Bridging Sensory Science and Nutrition Practice

(1) This study investigates the global health issue of excessive sugar intake by examining how sweet-liker status (SLS) relates to acceptability of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB), alongside other demographic factors. (2) Two sample sets were tested by 142 consumers: sucrose solutions and carbonated beverages. Each consumer was categorised into a SLS cluster using a recently standardised method. (3) Significant differences across SLS clusters were observed for age, sweetness perception, ethnicity, chronic disease status, and weekly full-sugar soft drink consumption. All SLS clusters found the 6% sucrose solution enjoyable. For the carbonated beverages’ acceptability, “high-sweet likers” responded similarly to children, high soft-drink consumers, and First Nations People, while the opposite was true for “low-sweet likers”. Most consumers enjoyed the 50% reduced-sugar beverage (5.9% sugar) and the full-sugar soft drink (11.5% sugar) equally. Acceptability declined notably below 5.9% sugar beverage sample. (4) This suggests policies around SSB reformulation could be more ambitious than they currently are. These findings also support the future use of SLS by health professionals to inform personalised nutrition care. This research highlights how the field of sensory science can inform strategies to lower sugar content in beverages without compromising consumer acceptability.