2024/25 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

FOOD3371 Food Product Development - Team Project

30 creditsClass Size: 150

Module manager: Professor Gleb Yakubov
Email: g.yakubov@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2024/25

Module replaces

FOOD3020; FOOD3021; FOOD3180; FOOD3190; FOOD3370

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

This module aims that students work effectively as a member of a product development team and understand the complete process of innovation using suitable project management approaches, conceptualise and formulate a new product using brainstorming, blue-sky thinking, involving consumer feedback at every point, determine raw materials, processing steps, present prototypes and kitchen scale samples, packaging, product specification, nutritional labelling and marketing strategy for the product launch. The development of new food products is an important part of a business strategy that can help to recruit new consumers, increase product sales, market share, and improve customer/client satisfaction and loyalty. A successful NPD (New Product development) process meets market demands and needs with an appropriate technical solution. New Product development (NPD) and Innovation is a multidisplinary in a food industry requires the organisation and collaboration of company staff from a range of different departments such as R&D, Nutrition, Production, Quality, Sensory. Marketing, Costing, Regulatory Affairs etc. Thus, in this module, teams will be balanced and comprised of individuals from the different Food Science, Food Science and Nutrition and Nutrition programmes to facilitate interdisciplinary environment encountered in any real life professional environment. It will be ensured that teams have at least each member as a specialist in his/her area, so that others can benefit from peer-based learning approaches. For example a student studying Food Science who has done Industrial Placement year may often be more suited to work on selecting appropriate unit operations for getting the product structure. Whereas the Nutritionist will detail things such as nutritional labelling, product specification, minimal processing to avoid nutritional degradation etc.The module aims to provide the learner with the opportunity to apply knowledge and acquire professional skills throughout the two semesters.

Objectives

The module aims to develop students’ professional ability to:
1) Apply the complete process of innovation value chain and project management in developing a food product from ideation to market launch.
2) Evaluate and select appropriate raw materials, food unit operations and packaging system, nutritional requirements in the design of food production systems to satisfy labelling, shelf-life, food quality and safety requirements based on principles of previously taught food science and nutrition taught modules.
3) Recognise European and International food regulations required for the manufacture and sale of food products, and assess the performance of a food process, and the conformance of food to product specifications, claims and appropriate legislation.

Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the module, students should be able to:
1) develop a product concept idea into a product prototype in a team via Stage Gate Process from Ideation to Final product concept.
2) propose a product specification by selecting appropriate raw materials needed and evaluate the contribution of different food components to the preliminary nutritional values of the food product ideas.
3) prepare product labelling for a new product with compliance to relevant national, European, and international food legislation and evaluate the potential health claims.
4) describe appropriate food processing steps from production to packaging and apply the principles of HACCP, by conducting a hazard analysis and identifying 'critical control', and evaluate the effect of extrinsic and intrinsic factors on a product's shelf life using appropriate analytical procedure.
5) prepare product and employ sensory preference tests for characterising sensory attributes and determining consumer preferences.
6) recognise product marketing requirements in product development and procedures for a product launch.

Skills outcomes
On completion of this module students will be better able to:
— demonstrate the ability to work in a team; participate in peer review
— effectively manage an end-to-end project as a team by using appropriate project management methodologies and deliver results in a timely manner
— analyze commercial challenges of launching a product from consumer, competition, cost, availability perspective
— solve problems at and each and every step of the product development process and make factual decisions
— develop effective communication skills to talk to non-experts within a team and beyond

Syllabus

Students will work in teams on the development of a food product, with individual contributions to specific aspects of the required process. Laboratory work and sensory analysis will be carried out in the food technology and food analysis laboratories and, where appropriate, in research laboratories. Students will work in teams on the development of a food product, with individual contributions to specific aspects of the required process. Students will be exposed to an end-to-end product development process using project management concepts, Gantt Charts, timesheets, brain storming exercises on idea generation and screening, concept development, test marketing, process design, recipe formulation, kitchen scale development of prototypes, equipment requirements, HACCP (Hazard analysis and critical control points),, sensory evaluation, statistical analysis, packaging and labelling requirements, commercialization and product launch strategy with presentation of a packaged product.
Key elements will be:
- Project management and project plan
- Product idea and concept development
- Market survey and analysis
- Recipe formulation, product and packaging specification
- Product development (lab prototypes)
- Consumer acceptance and product improvement
- Production process design
- Food Quality and Safety requirements
- Shelf-life requirements
- Food legislation, standards and labelling requirements
- Marketing strategy and costing
- Product launch plan

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
presentation	4	1.00	4.00
Group learning	21	10.00	210.00
Seminar	6	1.00	6.00
Independent online learning hours			60.00
Private study hours			20.00
Total Contact hours			220.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			300.00

Private study

This module is designed to provide more emphasis on applying of scientific concepts and principles of taught modules in previous years in product development, project based learning, using appropriate project management and time management techniques, critical thinking, decision making in problem solving and to take personal responsibility for learning.

- Independent online learning using materials from VLE and independent searches: 60 hours
• Doing self-ideations, mind maps, time-sheets: 10 hours
• Preparation of presentations, poster: 16 hours
• Preparing survey questionnaires, analysis (e.g. focus group, quantitative surveys, sensory analysis, flow charts): 14 hours
• Planning and writing of project reports, executive summary: 16 hours
• Peer-assessments: 4 hours

- Private study: 20 hours
• Supplementary reading/study: 20 hours

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Group project meetings
Verbal presentations of project progress
Peer assessments within project reports

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Report	1 x team final report	40.00
Presentation	1x team oral presentation	25.00
Presentation	1x team oral presentation	25.00
Tutorial Performance	Poster Presentation and Product Launch	10.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Reading list

There is no reading list for this module

Last updated: 04/09/2024

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