1. Food Product Development
H Lavercombe

2. Learning Outcomes
The principal outcome to this unit is for the candidate to develop the necessary knowledge and understanding of how to research, design, develop and produce food products that meet with current market developments.

3. Introduction
Developing new food products for commercial or high street markets is a time consuming and complex process.
Even after successful introduction of a new product, recipe or dish, the quality needs to be frequently improved to ensure continued success in an extremely competitive market.

4. Topic 1
Designing a New Product

5. Innovation Innovation in the food industry is a hot topic.
There are many different approaches to creating new innovative concepts, recipes and products.

6. Approaches
What makes your approach unique in the commercial world of food development?
Do you emphasis the commercial value of ideas?
Do you create ideas that address the needs of the consumer?
Do you understand the business-related implications of those ideas?

7. Development Cycle
IDEAS
DEVELOPMENT
TESTING
IMPROVEMENT
MARKET

8. Research and Idea Generation
Idea generation is a critical process in new product development that needs to be planned and creatively managed.
Idea generation can often be a neglected component of new product development efforts.
Large companies invest heavily in research and development yet the emphasis seems to be placed more on research rather than the creative process of generating ideas.
Successful idea generation is part of the pursuit for an undiscovered idea or new dish to enhance your menu.

9. Reasons for designing a New Product
To enter a professional cookery competition
To balance or enhance a new restaurant menu
To create a new convenience product
For a new airline, ferry or train menu
Can you think of any other ideas???

10. Creative Techniques Personal interviews Group reviews Brain storming
Written exercise
Content analysis

11. The Key to idea generation;
Capture a vision of your specific market from different angles.
Create a positive environment to collaborate, create ideas and problem solve directly with customers and potential customers.
See the problem from many different perspectives e.g customers, chefs food and beverage workers and the complainers
Think big …… without any constraints.
Use data from as many sources as possible.
Work in teams to successfully brainstorm.

12. Creative Thinking Sessions
These sessions can sometimes suffer due to the forcing of ideas.
It is best to work as groups to achieve a creative environment.
Research suggests that most people have their best ideas after the session and not before.
It is important to be mindful about valuing the sessions for their contribution to the process, without pushing too hard for instant results.

13. Topic 2
Analysing your product

14. Consumer insight
One of the most important factors in making innovative concepts successful in the market place is to understand consumer reactions early in the development process.
You should use a relevant consumer service that will help you to obtain insights on your concept.
Questionnaires need to be designed not only as to provide a strong quantitative analytical basis, but also to include qualitative research that helps you look beyond data.

15. Quantitative Analyst
This is a person who works using numerical data to give information based on questionnaires
e.g. how many people questioned liked vanilla ice-cream.

16. Qualitative Research
This is a method of investigation, traditionally found in market research .
Qualitative researchers aim understand human behaviour in depth and reasons that govern such behaviour.
e.g why a customer might like a certain flavour.

17. Reasons for Research
Various types of research activities can help obtain both research and data by establishing an extensive customer data base to answer your questions and give opinions.
From this you can then begin to gauge how well your concept be received.

18. Topic 3
Sensory Evaluation

19. Sensory Evaluation
This is a scientific discipline that applies the principles of experimental design and statistical analysis to the five human senses
(sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing)
The discipline requires panels of assessors, on whom the products are tested and the responses recorded.
By applying statistical techniques to results, it is possible to draw conclusions about the tested concept or product.
Most large consumer goods companies have specialised departments dedicated to sensory analysis.

20. Market Trends
The food product and restaurant market is affected by changing social and economic patterns.
Many people have a greater income today compared to 20 years ago.
People lead busier lives now, meaning they might do more shopping in supermarkets rather than in traditional shops and buy more ready meals or eat out instead of cooking for themselves.

21. Lifestyle Changes
In order to take account of these lifestyle changes food developers and chefs need to constantly rethink the type of food and dishes required for supermarkets and restaurant menus.
Customers expect to find a wide range of foods which includes overseas dishes and food ingredients.

22. Reasons
We travel abroad more frequently and so are exposed to many new types of food.
We live in a multi cultural community made up of a number of different races and religions- many with their own traditional cuisines.
There are many cookery programmes on television that encourage people to try new food ideas.

23. Topic 4
Why we Eat What we Eat?

24. Why we eat what we eat! Age Habit Presentation of food
Special dietary requirements
Religion
Political
Healthier eating
Organic
Fair trade

25. Topic 5
Producing your Product

26. The Development Stage
Producing the concept is the next stage in food production development.
All data and analysis that has been collated should now be used to develop the dish or concept.
It is here that you will prepare, cook and present your product.
In order to achieve this stage you will need to provide accurate food orders containing the types of ingredient that you will be using.
You will need to continually adjust and adapt the concept until you feel it is ready to present to the consumer to evaluate, refer to the development cycle.

27. Product Analysis Sheet
Dish /Concept 1
Dish /Concept 2
Dish/Concept 3
Name of Product
Presentation
Flavour
Texture
Aroma
Ease of Service
Additional Comments

28. More Detailed Analysis
Dish/Concept 1
Dish/Concept 2
Dish/Concept 3
Appearance
/10
Colour
Texture
Flavour
Balance

29. Quality Assurance and Implementing your Concept
Quality assurance is promise from the manufacturer to the customer that their food meets a clear, consistent set of standards.
There should be quality control checks at all key stages in the production of your concept and the results of the checks are written down.
This is called a quality assurance system.

30. Quality Control checks
Weight checks to ensure the product is the prescribed weight.
Visual checks to make sure that presentation is accurate
Temperature checks to make sure the product is being kept at an appropriate temperature
PH checks to make sure the food has the correct acidity/alkalinity.
Microbiological checks
Chemical checks
Ingredient checks
Final check – the sampling of the final product to check its flavour, texture and aroma. This is sometimes undertaken during a kitchen service.

31. Food Safety Some of these QC checks are to with food safety.
Food manufactures use a system called HACCP to help identify what could go wrong in the production process, and to establish checks that will prevent or reduce the risk of biological, physical or chemical hazards.

32. HACCP Checks Checks take place in three separate stages;
The design stage
The manufacturing stage ( including HACCP)
The end of the manufacture process: checking consistency of shape, size. Appearance, taste and textures of manufactured foods.

33. Quality Management System
(QMS) is a specialised way of documenting a quality assurance (QA) system to make sure it has been implemented properly.
Companies that use a QMS to maintain high QA standards receive a certificate that is recognised within the industry, called ISO

34. The QMS covers; The quality of raw materials used.
The details of the recipe used to make the product.
The processes and techniques used to make the product.
How the raw materials are stored
How the finished product is stored.
Details of the procedures for risk assessment