Representatives from across the food, health and vending sectors, including Unilever and Mondelez, joined an industry panel to select the winners of this year’s Culinary Product Development Challenge, run by the Automatic Vending Association (AVA) and University College Birmingham (UCB).
Working in teams, final year Culinary Arts Management students were tasked with developing a delicious new range of vending products that will meet calls for healthier vending alternatives.
Goosefoot’s winning concept consisted of two quinoa bars self-contained in carbon friendly packaging with one bar being sweet and one bar being savoury.
Goosefoot developed their idea for a quinoa bar after spotting a gap in the vending market for a healthy snack bar that was free from allergens and artificial ingredients. The team describes themselves as a British company committed to producing healthy products.
Team Goosefoot is made up of five members: Simon Whitby, Amelia Pratten, James Wood, Chris Luscombe, Michael Chatwin and Gavin Youngson.
The other five teams competing on this year’s Culinary Product Development Challenge and who also showcased their own tasty, nutritionally balanced vending snack to the judges today were Big Momma’s Kitchen, Super Pops, Synergy, Fill Me Up Cups and Posh Nosh.
AVA CEO Jonathan Hilder said: “In light of Simon Stevens’ latest announcement, that puts NHS staff at the helm of a bid to tackle rising obesity rates, our work with UCB and the generation that will shape the nation’s future becomes ever more important.
“We challenged the students to not only develop vendable, tasty, healthy products, but to also look at vending from a whole new perspective. This is key to driving improved customer perceptions of an industry that, despite the connotation, works tirelessly behind the scenes to meet the evolving needs of our society.
“This initiative is a credible demonstration of the vending industry’s commitment to tackling this issue.”
The judges cited Goosefoot as showing ‘”absolute passion” for their product which met all of the target criteria of being a vending snack product that was nutritionally balanced, tasty, well thought out and under 250 calories.
The UCB challenge follows the AVA’s recent announcement of its partnership with the UK’s leading weight-loss surgeon, Dr Sally Norton, who also helped judge the contest. For the first time in the challenge’s history, the winning product, the quinoa bar by Goosefoot, will go on sale at Dr Norton’s NHS Trust in Bristol as part of a healthy vending trial. It is hoped this will be rolled out across the country over the next few years.
Dr Norton commented: “Seeing what can be achieved by a contingent of young talent in just a few short weeks really highlights the opportunity for the healthy and nutritionally balanced snacking market. I am sure that the quinoa bar by Goosefoot will be a great success in Bristol, and will really pave the way for a new and improved long term approach to vending, using it as a solution to healthier lifestyles, rather than hindrance.”
Andy Dixon, sector head at Mondelez commented: “It was a unanimous decision – all of the judges were in total agreement that they would happily bring Goosefoot’s product to market. The team showed a strong understanding of quinoa and as a result, they delivered an end to end piece that we all felt would excel as a vending product.
“The standard today was exceptional, and it is getting better every year. It’s a great honour to watch our food product developers of the future in action.”
Tim Franklyn Hays, head of culinary service team at Unilever and also on the judging panel commented: “The standard today has been exceptionally high. The reason we chose Goosefoot as the winner was because of their total innovation and clear understanding of the product. They went all the way back to the farm to ensure total understanding of their product (quinoa) and it was clear they had thought of everything and thoroughly deserved to win.
“Bernhard Schumacher, culinary arts management lecturer at UCB commented: “The opportunity this task presents our students is unique, particularly this year as we see the winning products go on sale for the first time. Not only do the students learn about the opportunities and challenges posed in this important retail channel, it also allows them to take a product through its development and manufacture lifecycle, and now, direct to the consumer.
“Each year, the students have relished this activity, using it as a springboard to develop their skills and ultimately, help them to achieve their long term career goals.”
Jonathan concluded: “As well as being trialled across Bristol NHS Trust, the winning team will join the rest of the vending industry at our biennial event, AVEX International 2015 next June where they will Have a stand in the health and wellbeing area and show their product and also showcase the university. On the last night of the show they will attend the Vending Awards and be presented with their prize and this Black tie event in front of the whole industry.
“As a retail vehicle, vending machines are incredibly flexible, and able to stock a whole host of different products, from traditional chocolate and crisps, to healthier alternatives. We are excited by the results of this year’s challenge, and what we hope will be the start of a new generation of healthier products available through vending.”
Judges at this year’s challenge were Tim Franklyn Hays, head of culinary team at Unilever Food Solutions, Andy Dixon, sector manager cost and vending at Mondelez, Gillian White, founder at 24Vend, Roger Williams, managing director at Coinadrink, Paul Shattock, key account manager at Krane Merchandising Solutions, Neil Thomas, national sales manager at Selecta and Dr Sally Norton, leading UK obesity surgeon at Bristol NHS Trust.
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