AACC International Awards Students for New, Healthy Food Products

Low-calorie, high-fiber puffed snacks, heart-shaped cakes that are good for your heart, and a ready-to-eat whole grain meal, took the top awards during the sixth annual AACC International Student Division Product Development Competition. The competition was held during the World Grains Summit, September 17-20, 2006 in San Francisco, Calif.

Nine teams applied in the competition to develop a new, original food product consisting of one cereal product as the main ingredient. Each team prepared a report discussing product description, target market, and processing/packaging procedures. Out of the nine original teams, five were selected to present their products to the judges at the World Grains Summit, which took the place of the AACC International annual meeting. Each finalist team created a poster describing formulation, shelf life, marketing aspects, processing, packaging, and other relevant information regarding the product. Teams delivered a 10-minute oral presentation for the judges and provided servings of the product at a tasting session.

The first place prize of $2,500 went to team “Banana Nut Crunch” from Purdue University. Team member Orane Blake designed a high-fiber, reduced-calorie puffed snack product that was produced by utilizing a unique fiber ingredient developed by the student.

"This is great!Our youth should already be aware of the importance of healthy food products."