Food Science Students Rise to the Challenge
Students at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff (UWIC) were set a challenge by a leading Welsh bakery to get a taste of real life in the FMCG industry.
Brace’s Bakery set HND Food Science and Technology students the task of developing a new twist on the traditional Welsh cake as part of their new product development (NPD) module.
Harriet Myers came top of the class when she combined the classic flavours of lemon, honey and ginger to create a deliciously different Welsh cake. The 24-year-old from Torrington, Devon, who studies at UWIC’s Llandaff campus, also bagged herself £100 from the family baker for presenting the winning Welsh cake recipe.
As part of the assignment, the students had to attend several three-hour practical sessions, where they made samples of their new Welsh cakes for other students to taste the final product and give their verdicts. They also had to produce a real food industry specification sheet and define their market, selling price and unit cost.
Harriet, who is in the final year of the two year course, said “I really enjoyed the challenge and it was great to get a real-life brief from a company as well established as Brace’s. I never imagined I would win but I can now say I make a good Welsh cake! I came up with my recipe idea as it was approaching Christmas and I wanted to replicate the flavours in mulled wine, so my first attempt was an orange and clove Welsh cake. Although these were delicious it got me thinking of a fruit and spice range and my lemon, honey and ginger Welsh cakes were definitely the most popular in the taste trials.
“I had never really considered a career in NPD before this assignment, but it has given me a taste for it and I would definitely consider a position in that area now.”
Steven Morgan, technical manager at the family bakery, said: “It was really interesting to see the different ideas the students developed for a new range of Welsh cakes. NPD is a really exciting aspect of the food industry and they all presented some great ideas in line with the brief they were set.
“Harriet’s project had been well thought out capturing all the elements required to design a new product. From the initial market research under taken, the commercial consideration, through to the product design, manufacture and target customers.
“At Brace’s we constantly review our product range and now boast a range of 50 products and have some exciting new products in the pipeline. Harriet’s product will go to our test bakery for further reviews, so you never know it could be on the shelves one day.”
Food Science and Technology examines the chemistry and biology of foods from raw material through processing to the final product and providing graduates with the necessary practical skills to do real jobs in the real world.
Dr Ruth Fairchild, registered nutritionist at UWIC, said: “We were delighted to have a challenging NPD brief from Brace’s for the students to really experience what life in NPD is like, challenging, fast paced and ever changing. All the students undertaking the module produced very tasty and saleable products but Harriet’s old fashioned apothecary range really hit the spot!”
Back to News