03: Creating Your Product
Product Development
Now that you have an idea of what your product will be, it’s time to actually make it.
The process of product development involves creating prototypes, testing them with consumers, and making changes based on their experience and feedback until you have a final design ready for manufacturing.
Once you develop and test the recipe, you can scale up production and test the product in a commercial kitchen or with a co-packer (more on this later).
Developing Recipes in Your Home Kitchen
This is one way to develop your product. However, you must test the recipes on people who are not friends or family members. You want honest feedback on how they taste and if they are appealing enough to sell. This can be done by setting up tastings at local grocery stores, restaurants, bakeries, or coffee shops.
That said, developing recipes in your home kitchen has some limitations and challenges. For example:
- You may not have access to the same equipment, ingredients, or packaging materials that you would use in a commercial kitchen or a co-manufacturer’s facility. This can affect your product’s quality, consistency, and shelf life.
- You may not be able to scale your business or meet the demand of your customers. You may also face challenges with distribution, storage, and delivery.
- You may not be able to sell your product legally unless you qualify under Cottage Food Laws. Each state has its own Cottage Food Laws to regulate at-home food businesses. They determine the type of food, what to sell, where to sell, and how much you can sell per year. They also require you to follow certain food safety, labeling, and licensing requirements.
Working with a Food Scientist
Food scientists are professionals who specialize in recipe development for new food or beverage products. It’s another way to create, test, and improve your product before launching it to the market.
These experts know the ins and outs of the food industry and can help you develop recipes that not only taste great but also meet safety standards and regulations.
A food scientist can help you with various aspects of your product development, such as:
- Developing new or improved food products that meet consumer demands and preferences
- Testing the chemical, physical, microbiological, and sensory properties of your product
- Improving the shelf life, stability, and functionality of your product
- Ensuring the safety and hygiene of your product and complying with food regulations and standards
- Optimizing the cost-effectiveness and sustainability of your product and its ingredients
- Innovating new technologies and methods for food processing and packaging
Note that each food scientist has their own area of expertise. Someone focused on beverage formulation will be different from a protein bar formulator.
In order to make the product that you want to present to consumers, be sure to have requirements for the types of ingredients you want might want to include/exclude, what certifications you might want (ie Organic), limitations on ingredient cost, packaging type (not design), and timeline. Clear communication on requirements and what are nice-to-haves will allow the food scientist to leverage their years of training and experience to design your product the way you want it.
Working with a University Pilot Lab
There are a number of universities across the country with food science programs that help develop commercial products as educational training for their students. They even have pilot labs that can help test manufacturing at a small scale.
Each university has different capabilities, so it’s important to find one that aligns with your needs some can help with product formulation, while others can help with processing tests on production equipment.
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The first step in starting a partnership with a university is finding one that has the capacity to help your business grow.
There are many factors that go into finding the right partner, including:
- Location: While finding a partner close by can be convenient, you may have to work with someone across the country. I recommend joining in person so you can see the process in action and make tweaks on site.
- Capacity: Make sure that they can schedule you in a timeframe that works for you.
- Offering: You want to find a partner who can offer everything from product development and testing all the way through commercialization if needed. If they cannot provide everything you need, they may not be able to help you grow your company as quickly as possible.
- Experience: Finding someone with experience working with companies like yours will save time and money.
- Capability: Make sure that they can make your product with the equipment they have – getting new equipment in takes a lot longer than you expect.
Linda Alvarez and Stephanie Schrauth launched Levelle Nutrition, a sports nutrition company targeted to women utilizing the Cornell Food Venture Center. “Working with the Cornell Food Venture Center, I was able to learn firsthand the regulations, procedures, and food safety and shelf stability science that allowed us to go from one flavor to three. Additionally, through the Cornell Food Venture Center (CFVC), we were able to gain access to the CFVC Pilot Plant facility. With the use of this facility and knowledgeable Pilot Plant staff, Stephanie and I were able to scale our kitchen process to a commercially viable procedure.“
List of University Pilot Labs
- Drexel University
- Rutgers University
- University of Nebraska – Lincoln
- Cornell Food science
- Ohio state
- Washington state
- UC Davis
- SDSU
- UGA extention
- UW Madison
- UW Stout
- Clemson
- Rutgers
- NC State
- Guelph
- Purdue
- University of Illinois Urbana Champaign
Determine the Shelf-life
If you want to start a food or beverage company, you HAVE to pay attention to the shelf life.
Shelf life is the length of time you can store your product from the point of production – either in a warehouse or on a store shelf – before it creates a poor customer experience.
It’s important because it affects everything from how much you can charge for your product to how much you need to spend on marketing and advertising.
And, of course, to make sure that you do not make your consumers sick or kill them.
Now the question is: who will determine the shelf life?
Determining the shelf life of a new food or beverage product is typically the responsibility of the company, often the research and development (R&D) team or quality assurance (QA) department.
This team will conduct a series of tests and evaluations to determine the appropriate shelf life for your product, taking into account factors such as:
- Type of packaging
- How will you store your products (ie refrigerated, frozen, or ambient)?
- What are the ingredients and how are they assembled?
- How are the ingredients processed & sterilized for human consumption?
- Are there any preservatives used?
- Water activity, pH, light exposure, oxidative potential, etc.
And once you determine your shelf life, label it clearly on the product’s packaging and communicate to retailers, distributors, and consumers to ensure that the product is used and consumed within the appropriate time frame.
When labeling your shelf life, consider the following:
- Use clear language: Use “Best By” or “Use By” to indicate the date by which the product should be consumed for optimal quality and safety.
- Provide storage instructions: Mention specific storage instructions (if required) to maintain the shelf life of the product, such as “Keep Refrigerated” or “Store in a Cool, Dry Place.”
- Comply with regulations: Comply with relevant guidelines for labeling and shelf life determination set by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Once you understand this framework, you’ll be one step closer to breaking the category norm and marking your presence in the market.
Product Reformulation
Sometimes your product will need to get reformulated multiple times. The TeaSquares formula and manufacturing process went through about 60 iterations over 5 years as we constantly sought to improve it. But it can be challenging as Bryan Kay from YUNO Botanicals agrees,
“Reformulating a product can be one of the most challenging aspects of starting a company, and it was a personal struggle for me. Adjusting my original recipe to meet various standards and improve quality required patience and persistence. I had to conduct thorough testing in small and large groups to ensure the changes were safe and appealing to my target market. Navigating regulatory requirements was another hurdle, involving lab reviews and meticulous documentation of production standards. The process demanded flexibility and resilience, as I encountered multiple iterations and unexpected setbacks. Despite these challenges, I found that successful reformulation significantly enhanced my product’s marketability and set the foundation for long-term success. The journey wasn’t easy, but it was worth every effort.”