Chemists, and Food and Wine Scientists
Study the chemical and physical properties of substances, develop and monitor chemical processes and production, develop new and improve existing food products, and plan and coordinate the production of wine and spirits.
Launching a new crunchy snack
You are a food technologist at a snack company, finishing a new crunchy product that is due to launch in a few weeks. It is Tuesday morning. Marketing has promised a launch date, the first factory trial is tomorrow, and a few things about the recipe are still not settled.
Choose what you would do. Then see what happens. There are often good reasons for each choice.
We have printed the packaging and it says natural flavours and a long shelf life. The launch is booked. Can you confirm both claims are fine, please? The printer is waiting on my approval.
Confirm both claims since the recipe is nearly finished
The packaging is printed. Testing later shows the snack goes stale sooner than the pack says, and the packs have to be thrown away and reprinted.
Tell her you need to check the test results and the ingredient list for each claim, and promise an answer by tomorrow
One claim is supported by the data and the other needs wording changed. Priyanka fixes the pack in time. A claim on a pack is a promise to every customer.
Tell her to remove both claims to be safe
The pack is safe from complaints, but it loses a selling point that was true. Taking the time to check would have kept what was accurate.
For tomorrow's trial, the line has just been used for a batch containing peanuts. We are behind, so can we start your snack straight away? Your product does not have peanuts in it, so it should be fine.
Ask Wayne to follow the full cleaning and allergen check procedure before starting, even if the trial starts later
The trial starts late but the product is safe. Wayne grumbles, and you realise a clearer plan with the schedule would have helped both of you.
Agree, since the recipe has no peanuts and it is only a trial
Traces of peanut could end up in a snack that people with allergies may assume is safe. A trial product might still be tasted, and the mistake could be serious.
Insist on the cleaning and allergen checks, then offer to reorder the trial schedule so the delay is short
You and Wayne rearrange the day. The line is cleaned and checked and the trial runs safely. Allergen control is never optional, even for a test.
I tried the snack and I like it, but after a minute there's a strange aftertaste, like cardboard. I do not know if anyone else will notice, and I do not want to cause a fuss. I thought you should know.
Thank her, ask more questions about it, and add it to the panel results to test properly
Several other panellists agree, and the cause turns out to be an oil that is going off slightly. You change the oil supplier before launch.
Tell her taste is personal and not everybody notices this kind of thing, so it is probably fine
The aftertaste is overlooked and customers notice it. Sales start well, then fall away as people decide not to buy a second time.
Thank her, but do nothing about it unless more people on the panel mention it as well
Waiting for more evidence is fair, but nobody else is asked, and a quiet problem stays quiet. A short follow up with the panel would have answered the question.
How it went
The packaging is adjusted, the line is checked and a new supplier is on the way. Food technologists combine science, taste and safety in products that thousands of people will eat. Does the idea of tracing a flavour problem back to its cause sound like a good puzzle?
This is a simplified, fictional situation to help you explore. It is not professional instruction or a test of your ability.
Case study: Pick it Thursday or wait
A fictional case set in a food company's test kitchen and quality lab, and a winery during vintage.
The situation
Sofia was the winemaker at a small vineyard in the Hollis Valley. A forecast of heavy rain was coming on the weekend. The shiraz grapes were close to ripe, but her tests showed the flavours were not quite there yet. The vineyard manager, Dave, wanted to pick on Thursday and avoid the rain. The owner, who was nervous, said that rain at the wrong moment could ruin the whole vintage, and she should play safe.
What they did
Sofia walked the rows and tasted grapes from different parts of the vineyard. She tested sugar and acid levels in each block, and discovered that the lower block was ready, while the higher one needed another couple of days. She asked Dave whether the crew could pick the ready block first on Thursday and the rest on Friday morning before the rain. She talked it over with the owner so everyone knew what was being risked and what was gained.
How it turned out
The crew picked the lower block on Thursday and the higher block on Friday morning, just before the rain. The wine from the second block was better because of the wait. A small amount of fruit was lost to the weather, which the owner accepted, as it was a decision they had made together.
What would you do?
- How would you choose between playing it safe and chasing a better result?
- Why might Sofia have tasted the grapes herself as well as testing them?
- Who should be part of a decision where the weather decides the cost of a mistake?