20/11- Nutriplus Memo 7

Since we are finishing the first part of our product, before it goes to the next phase, we have to think about marketing, how we can offer our product and make people want to buy it. Why marketing is important? First, you can have the greatest food in the world, but if nobody knows that it exists, they won´t look for it. Our market has to focus on the nutritional aspect of NutriSnack, because this is our Unique Selling Point, so we have to invest in it.

NutriSnack is gluten-free, so is suitable for people who have coeliac disease. The cheese is enriched with essential oil, which brings benefits as antioxidant and antibacterial. So, the idea that we want to pass is, if you think about it, is not just a slice of bread with a slice of cheese, because the bread doesn´t have gluten so has few carbohydrates and the cheese is not just a cheese, is a functional kind.

The consumer shouldn´t feel guilty about this snack instead of a fruit or vegetable. It is tasty and has a lot of benefits for the body. So, we decided to call it “guilt-free”. And this is our product logo: NutriSnack, the guilt-free snack.

In order to make people talk about our product, we also need a statement that makes the consumer reminds about it. It has to be something simple, with some rhyme, easy to remember. So we came up with “Don´t think twice, have a guilt-free slice!”

All these phrases were made thinking about our target market: people who doesn´t have time, that is always running with something to do, and just need a little break, that usually involves a non-healthy food. That is why we are offering this change of life.

Especially, we thought about vending machines to sell our product, located strategically in places like airport and convenience stores.

And now, our journey is complete!

13/11-NutriSnack Infographic

To start to draw the infographic, we have to have in mind our process.

The cheese making processing involves milk, starter culture and rennet (enzymes). Milk should be filtrated, pasteurized and homogenised. The starter culture chosen is the strain Streptococcus thermophiles, due its capacity of surviving in high temperatures, production of bacteriocins and probiotic characteristics.

The fermentation occurs in a pH of 5.2, at 30°C for 30-40 minutes. Then, the solid goes to cutting, molding and chilling process. The essential oil is spread by spray valves over the cheese. And it is ready to be sliced.

Ingredients for bread includes: gluten-free flour (Buckwheat, chickpea and lentil flour), salt, gum and guar, sugar, transglutaminase, dried yeast, water, oil, sodium caseinate. In the literature, the strain of Lactobacillus buchneri is indicated for gluten-free baking products.

The process consist in mix all the ingredients, mold, ferment (30ºC for 40 minutes), bake (230°C for 43 minutes) and cool at room temperature.

Combining both processes, NutriSnack is ready to go for the market!

06/11-Nutriplus Memo 6

Every new product need to be submitted to a patent process.  The creator has to research data bases to find if there is any similar process that is already protected. In our case, a similar patent that is found is about “Wheyless process for production of string cheese”, where the inventor suggests the use of essential oil as natural conservator to improve shelf-life.

This patent is related with the actual process of the cheese.  In order to find products that can compete with our product, we have to do a market research.

We found out three products that although not similar in composition, can compete as nutritional and healthy snacks, since NutriSnack was developed to fill in a gap in the snacks market.  Also, they are all gluten-free, that is our best differential, because we can extend our product to people who have coeliac disease.

First, we have ActiSnack, that was designed to supply sports nutrition requirements. It comes in five flavours with different kinds of nuts and fruits. The package was developed thinking about convenience, to be hold in a running belt or saddle packs. It can has a more convenient package for sportive people, but it don´t remind a proper meal as NutriSnack does.

Then, we have Sowan´s Gluten Free Mixes, a brand that makes mixes for gluten-free bread, made with wholegrain flours and no added improvers or bulking agents. It can compete with our gluten-free bread slices, but it has a flaw: is not ready to eat.

Last, the Hanna´s Secret products. They have “Power Scones” that they claim to actively reduce cholesterol and the high fibre breakfast bread that can be equivalent of a 30g bowl of porridge. This could be our main competitor, because it follows the same line of “guilty-free snack”.

It is important to have in mind that we are not alone on the market, to improve our technologies and marketing skills, so our product can be highlighted among the others.

Reference:

Kraft FoodsHoldings, Inc. 2007. Wheyless process for production of string cheese. EP 1791439 A1

06/12-Nutriplus Memo 5

Now that we have all the research done, it is time to think about practical work. Inside the industry, the employees should be trained correctly to do right work. Most of them doesn´t have superior education to understand about the scientific or engineering sides of the process. But they have the general understanding about it. So, as owners of this idea, we should present the process in a simple and dynamic way, to facilitate the knowledge to be learned.

An infographic is a good way to present information due its dynamism, the use of draws and colours can catch the viewers’ attention and it can be more efficient than a traditional training method.

To develop a good infographic, we have to describe the process in a flowchart combined with all the information that is necessary, although just brief sentences are enough. The infographic must contain other information like the benefits that the product has, advantages, disadvantages, importance.  

It is important to explain each step, and how it has influence in the rest of the process. This way, the employee can also know if something is wrong during some step and can fix it before is too late. Especially for a batch processing, if one step goes wrong, the whole batch is lost. And it costs time and money. All the parameters, mainly in the fermentation step, have to be constantly monitored.

Also, we created a flowchart with both processes, and in the end they converted in one product, so it gives the idea that although there are two different processes, they have the same importance, because the combination of both is what makes our product so special.

23/10-Nutriplus memo 4

It is time to go deeper into our researches.  We had to present some specif information about our process. Since we had our bioprocessing chosen, we need to think about scale up and machinery. To produce cheese, it is necessary to have a fermentation tank, that will be our biorreactor, so it has to have temperature and pressure monitored, since the fermentation process release gas and also can get the temperature higher inside the vassel. Also, is necessary to have a feed entrance and a draining valve. This will operate in a batch process. For bread, we need a fermentation oven, where the temperature and humidity can be monitored. Moist content can interfere in the fermentation, as well the temperature, that have to be keep around 30°C, allowing  the fermentation to occur faster.
The disadvantages for batch processing are: waiting time and waste of product if something goes wrong. Still, it is the best option for a small scale production.
In this step of our journey, we really have to think about details of our work.

02/10-Nutriplus Memo 3

At this class, we really have to think about some basics questions that would define our product and why develop it is important. First, the concept. What is the main purpose of our product. At this point, all we had was the general idea: a snack with cream crackers and cheese enriched with essential oil. But we have to think: What can make my product different?
We decided follow the "guilty-free" snack concept. Something tasty and with more benefits than the traditional version.
And now, we had to answer: Why people would want to buy it? Well, people are always busy, and usually the unhealthy foods are the chosen one for break time. Of course, you always can change it for some fruit, but is not all the time that we are in the mood to eat fruit and vegetables. That is why companies are developing everyday products enriched with fibers, omegas, antioxidants... Because it is a necessity. So we found our niche.
And about the next step? It would be to find the right strain to produce a cheese with the characteristics that are wanted and choose the essential oil that would be used, based in its benefits.After some research, we found it the strain Streptococcus thermophiles for cheese production, due its capacity of surviving in high temperatures, production of bacteriocins and probiotic characteristics. Fr bread, in the literature, the strain of Lactobacillus buchneri is indicated for gluten-free baking products.
So, after this class, we already know where we were going and why, now is time to discover how.
In order to organise our ideas and researches, we created an E-Portfolio, where we can expose our project and the research behind it. Is a practical and dynamic way to present information.And we can always update with news and all the progress that we are making.

25/09/2015- Nutriplus Memo 2

For our next task, we had to research some articles in order to decide which would be our main bioprocess in the project. We found some good information involving fermentation.We have decided to use cheese fermentation as main bioprocess. However, we needed a nutraceutical product. In our researches, we have found that a nutraceutical product has benefits to improve health, prevents diseases or delay aging process. In order to do this, we thought about essential oils, that are a new trend in food, due its antioxidant properties and other benefits to human body. So we could combine both things in one product: cheese with oregano oil.
We looked for some articles about it and found some research showing that it really can improve health.
Then, another thought occurs to us: Why not combine the cheese with something else, like a bread or cream cracker? Both of these products are obtained by fermentation. And we can pack together to do an easy snack. But, it also needed a functional aspect. So, we have decided to do a gluten-free snack,that is healthier and suitable for people with coeliac disease.