Food students develop innovation skills through the Avondale Challenge
August 9, 2021
Students on the Level 3 Food courses at Loughry Campus were set a challenge to design a new and innovative food product as part of their Product Development unit. This challenge tested the creativity, entrepreneurial and practical skills of each student, whilst they competed to succeed in our annual Avondale Foods Challenge.
Over 14 weeks each student researched, developed and designed a new food to meet a development brief set by the competition sponsor Avondale Foods. An added dimension this year was the challenge of working remotely from their peers whilst accessing a wealth of information using their digital skills.
Each student was presented with a unique development brief, and the top three concept ideas were identified. Congratulations to Rachel McIntyre with her ‘Poke Bowl Salad’, Caitlin Walker who designed an innovative flexitarian dish called ‘Mexiflex Meatballs’, and Emma Halliday who developed a ‘Fresh Lemon Herb Salad’. Through the challenge, students identified key trends in the market and developed products that used innovative ingredients, were allergen free and packaged in eco-friendly materials.
The students enjoyed the practical aspects of this development challenge and after a semester of mostly working online, they particularly appreciated the opportunity to engage in practicals in Loughry Campus’ Food Innovation Centre to bring their product ideas to life. Working in our Product Development kitchens allowed the students to explore their creativity and experiment with unusual flavour combinations to develop a product that met their development brief.
With excellent links to the agri-food industry and state of the art facilities, Loughry Campus develops highly employable students through their suite of Food Programmes. Our Level 3 Diploma Food courses are an excellent alternative to A-Levels and provide students with the opportunity to progress on to Higher Education study or enter employment within the agri-food sector.
If you are considering your options after GCSE, visit our course pages to find out more about our Level 3 Food Programmes.
CAFRE continues to accept applications for September 2021 entry, apply now.