food booklet 13 eng

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Food Product Development

13 Food Product Development

13.1 Types of Food Industries

13.1.1 Types of food industries in Hong Kong

13.1.2 Examples of leading local and overseas foodcompanies in Hong Kong

13.2 Factors to be considered in research anddevelopment of food products

13.2.1 External Factors

13.2.2 Trends in the marketplace

13.2.3 Internal Factors

13.2.4 Designing and Developing Food Products

13.2.5 Stages in the production of a food product

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13 Food Product Development

13.1 Types of Food Industries

13.1.1 Types of food industries in Hong Kong

There are different types of food industries around the world and in Hong Kong. In

Hong Kong, the most active category in food industry is trading. Currently, some major

food importers or traders in Hong Kong include Dah Chong Hong, Four Seas, Asia

Pacic (HK) Ltd, EDO Trading Co., Kwan Hong Yuen Trading Co. Ltd., Yu Kee TradingCo. Ltd., Sun Shun Fuk etc.

Large Hong Kong manufacturers have expanded their global network and set up ofces

or factories in major markets. For example, Lee Kum Kee has factories and regionalofces in Chinese cities, the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK), andVitasoy has factories in Shenzhen, Shanghai in China, and the United States (US) andAustralia.

Apart from trading, there is a considerable scale of food production in Hong Kong. Mostof the production is for local consumption. Major food products from these industriesinclude instant noodles, pasta, biscuits, pastries and cakes. Others include canning,preserving and processing of seafood, dairy products, seasoning and spirits. Following

are different types of food products including (A) beverages, (B) confectionery, (C) dairyfoods, (D) bakery products, (E) dessert, (F) sauce, dressing and soup, (G) processed

meat and (H) nutraceuticals.

(A) Beverages

The main category of beverages includes:(i) alcoholic, e.g. liquors like brandy, whiskey etc, wine (red, white, rose), Chinese

wine, and beer(ii) non-alcoholic, e.g. carbonated soft drink, fruit juice, cordial(iii) health beverages (functional drinks)

Main components of beverages are water, sugar, acid, fruits, and vitamin C. For softand functional drinks, water is the most important if not only the vehicle. Sugar usuallypresents at about 12%. Acids like citric and malic acids are used to adjust pH to 2.5-4.Fruit juice, concentrate or pure are the main forms of fruits in the drinks, enhanced withavour (as emulsion or straight avour).

The role of sugar should be noted. It functions as a bulking agent which providesviscosity (for mouth feel), this is more important than the function as a sweetener infood processing. Sweetness can be perceived at 3 different ranges:(i) less than 8% (not sweet as sensed)(ii) 8-18% (proportional sweetness)(iii) over 18% (very sweet)

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As over-consumption of sugar is one of the causes of obesity which may increase therisk of diabetes mellitus and syndrome X etc., many drinks presently contain sweetenersinstead. They are polyols like xylitol, sorbitol, isomalt as bulking agent (sweetness 0.4 -0.5% relative to sugar), and intense articial sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose etc.

to adjust to the right sweetness level.

For carbonated drinks, the main ingredient is avouring, which is usually dosagedat 0.1% in carbonated and sugared water. The avours for orange and citrus drinksare emulsied citrus oil droplets, while others like coca-cola are straight avours.Phosphoric acid is a common acidulant in cola drinks, with caramel being the colourprovider.

Fruit juice is not carbonated. If fruit juice level is low, it is known as fruit drink. Cordialis a concentrate, which contains also sugar syrup and / or pectin. It is to be diluted with3-4 times water before consumption.

There are many functional drinks that are made up of herbs extracts or traditionalChinese medicine (TCM).

Drinks are packaged in glass bottle, plastic container or tetrabrik. Pasteurization orsterilisation (ultra heat treatment (UHT) or high temperature short time (HTST)) isperformed to stop bacterial growth.

(B) Confectionery

This section covers hard boiled, soft gummy, toffee and nougat, bre candy andchewing gum. Hard boiled is formed by solidication of super-saturated sugar solution.Flavour and acids are blended into super hot sugar solution which is still plasticallysoft. By multi-folding while cooling, an individual candy is formed in moving moulds.There is another type called deposited candy formed by depositing dissolved syrupat 150 - 160 to stationary moulds. It is transparent and has a much better taste.Examples are herbal drops.

Various soft candies are formed by gelation of various concentrated solution: starchcandy from amylo-pectin starch plus xanthan; gelatin candy from gelatin (source: beef

skin or bone, pork skin); rubber candy from gum acacia.

Like beverages, sugar replacers are employed to make healthy candies. The onemostly used is isomalt. Xylitol, sorbitol, aspartame and sucralose are also used.

Toffee is a soft gelatin candy with the addition of milk, being pulled and cut into form.Nougat is a set sugar syrup added with nuts and milk, then solidied and knife cut.

Chewing gum and bubble gum are gum base which is made of rubber, plasticiser(glycerin), sugar, acid and avour. Ingredients are blended well, cooked, stirred,sheeted and cut, or moulded instead of sheeting for sugar coating. A healthy version

of it is no sugar with sweeteners.

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(C) Dairy products

Dairy industries in Hong Kong refer to milk, ice-cream and yoghurt. Soya milk is notdairy but only a dairy substitute.

The composition of milk is protein (casein and whey lactoglobulin), fat, lactose andwater. In the market, fresh milk is sold under silver seal; the milk is obtained fromcow, pasteurised and packaged. On the other hand, gold seal milk is a reconstitutionfrom milk protein or powder, milk, fat and water, with stabiliser added. When freshmilk is disturbed, a layer of fat that oats on the surface is butter. When the pH of theaqueous portion is lowered to 4.2, casein coagulates to become cheese. Lactose andwhey protein remain in water. Whey protein can be isolated and concentrated to wheyprotein concentrate (WPC) which is a valuable healthy ingredient.

Ice-cream is made from solvating milk solid, milk fat and sugar to form liquor, usually

added with avour, food colour, acids, fruit pieces and stabilisers. After homogenisation,the liquor is chilled and whipped at freezing temperature to form the product. Theamount of air incorporated is called overrun; overrun 110 means 110 parts of air areincorporated to 100 parts of liquor.

When some good bacteria (culture) is added to milk, lactose is consumed andturned to lactic acid. At its isoelectric point (pH 4.2), casein coagulates, and yoghurt isformed. In industry, extra milk powder is usually added to the product during bacterialfermentation. The culture grows in population, known as probiotics, which is healthyto our large intestine. There are spoonable sturdy yoghurt and drinkable yoghurt like

Yakult.

Soymilk having nutritional composition similar to milk except casein and lactose is adairy substitute nowadays. Soya oil, soya protein and soya sugar (called stachyose)can be isolated to be used for various food processing. Soya isoavone in soy milk isa plant female hormone, which has attracted a lot of attention because of its biologicalfunctions such as cancer prevention.

(D) Bakery

A matrix is formed by hydration of our, which is a mixture of protein (gluten) and starch.

According to the amount of protein, there are high, medium and low gluten ours. Mainbakery goods are bread, cake, biscuit, cookie, etc. Chinese cakes like Ma Lai Go orSung Go are not bakery products because the gas-raising is caused by steaming andnot baking. However, there are certain parts of the mechanism which are in common.

Bread is made of high gluten our raised by yeasts. There are various types of yeasts:active, dormant and deep-frozen. The our is wetted with water together with yeastand butter as well as sugar or egg added depending on the types of bread. They arekneaded to form a dough. By standing at room temperature, yeasts grow and producecarbon dioxide to form air cells in the gluten / starch matrix. After shaping into small

pieces of dough, they are placed in oven. The baking process produces additionalvolume of air cells, starch being hydrated, surface is roasted to become brown andthen bread is formed.

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Cake is made of low gluten our, carbon dioxide is generated by the action of leaveningagent, like soda. When heated, carbon dioxide is produced. Examples are chiffon cakewith various avours such as vanilla, chocolate, lemon, strawberry etc.

Various biscuits including cookies are formed by our with various gluten levels, added

with various amount of fat and sugar levels, formed by different methods, then resultedwith a variety of texture, taste and mouthfeel.

(E) Dessert

This section describes only the gel types like fruit jellies and puddings. Jellies areformed by gelling agent in water, and puddings are gelation in milk. Two types ofconventional gelling agents are agar and gelatin, the former is plant hydrocolloid and

latter, more popular, is animal protein.

Usually 2.5-5.0% gelatin is dissolved in hot water or milk, then is cooled down to form

jelly or pudding. It is not stable with some melting at room temperature. By replacingall gelatin with 1.2% carrageenan, similar texture of jelly and pudding is obtained thatdoes not melt at room temperature and is convenient for mass retail. Nowadays, the

carrageenan is further replaced by 0.6% of a mixture of kappa carrageenan and konjacglucomannan. Again, similar textured desserts such as the small jelly cup type productsare extremely popular.

(F) Sauce, dressing and soup

There are many varieties of sauces, both oriental and western, like soya, oyster, chili,

mustard, worchestershire, etc. They usually do not use oil or fat but have starch beingused as thickener. Todays sauces contain xanthan, a hydrocolloid to replace somestarch.

Gravy, a western concept, is the chef sauce formed immediately after cooking meat.It is the exudate of meat during cooking, avoured with additional salt, sugar, spicesand wine, then thickened with starch or our; for serving meat dishes.

Dressing is mainly for salads containing high portion of oil. Egg-containing mayonnaisebelongs to this class. Todays dressings contain some hydrocolloids to replace someoil for healthy purpose.

The so called dip is a dressing designed for snacks. It is thicker than ordinary dressingso that the snack can be picked-up during dipping.

Soup products are canned or pouched in liquid or powder form. Besides meatyextracts, salt and/or sugar, the meaty avour is extended with hydrolysed vegetableprotein (HVP) and yeast extract. For soup powder, salt, monosodium glutamate ormalto-dextrin are adsorbed (coated) or spray-dried.

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(G) Processed meat

Processed meat mainly includes ham, meat loaf and sausage. These foods contain

high fat and cholesterol, which are unfavourable to health if consumed too much. Infact, they are very tasty, and thus, individuals are tempted for over consumption.

For health benets, many healthy versions of processed meat can be found. Forexample, sausages contain texturised vegetable protein (TVP) as meat replacer; smallamount of soya protein concentrate (SPC) and hydrocolloids such as carrageenan andkonjac are added to imitate the juiciness of meat. HVP and yeast extracts as well asother avouring agents are added to provide the meaty avours.

(H) Nutraceuticals

Functional foods are foods which are supplemented or re-enforced with health-promoting ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, herbs, traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), bre, natural vegetable extracts, etc.

Nutraceuticals are pharmaceutical forms, containing extracts or concentrates offunctional health ingredients. They are neither medicine nor foods, and they usually

come in the forms of capsules (hard and soft), tablets, syrup, sachet powders, etc. Theproduction of nutraceuticals is relatively simple, but the product development involvesformulation of functional ingredients, which involves extensive studies of the literatureand selection of complimentary food extracts for particular health functionality.

13.1.2 Examples of l eading local and overseas food

companies in Hong Kong

(A) Beverages

(i) Alcoholic beverages

San Miguel Brewery Hong Kong Ltd.San Miguel Brewery Hong Kong Ltd. derived from San Miguel CorporationPhilippine was found in 1948 and reached 400,000 litres by volume in sales

in the rst year. Its plant in Sham Tseng had expanded four times in the past50 years before closing down in 1996. The company has been listed on HongKong Stock Exchange since 1963. It had its rst own brand beer, Mon Lei, inoverseas market in 1970. In the 1990s, sales and production of San Miguelbeer started to extend to the mainland China. The most popular product is SanMiguel Pale Pilsen. The other Hong Kong local products are San Miguel Light,Blue Ice Beer, Lwenbru. San Miguel Non-Alcoholic Malt Beverage, IKINAMAHapposhu and HofBrau are manufactured for exporting to other countries.Several other different products are also being produced in the factories inGuangzhou and Shunde for the market of mainland China.

Company website: http://www.sanmiguel.com.hk/main.html

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(ii) Non-alcoholic beverages

Vitasoy GroupTraditionally, soybean drink is a nutritious, high-protein beverage. Dr. K. S. Lotried to bring soybean drink with added milk protein into Hong Kong marketin 1940. Initially, Vitasoy was delivered fresh door-to-door on bicycles. The

business was interrupted by war in 1941 and the sales volume was only 1000bottles a day during that period. Vitasoy was relaunched after the war andstarted to be sold through retail outlets. Sterilisation process was establishedto the production of Vitasoy in 1953. After this advancement, Vitasoy could bekept at room temperature without refrigerating and hence the sales volumeincreased so great that a new plant was set up in Kwun Tong in 1962. TetraBrik packaging and ultra heat treatment (UHT) processing was introduced in1975 and the quality and avour could then be kept for months. About thesame time, Vita was born on the market as a new brand and a series of fruitdrinks and tea products was launched. Today, Vitasoy products can be foundin over 30 overseas markets and it has big market shares in the world.Company website: http://www.vitasoy.com/en/cs_welcome.asp

The Coca-Cola CompanyThe Coca-Cola Company is one of the world largest beverage companiesmanufacturing nonalcoholic drinks. Asa Candler established the Coca-ColaCompany in 1892 in Atlanta, USA. It is best known for its agship productCoca-Cola which was invented by a pharmacist called John Stith Pembertonin 1886. The company operates a franchised system where the Coca-ColaCompany only produces syrup concentrate which is then sold to various

bottlers throughout the world. It currently offers nearly 400 brands over 200

countries including Coke original, Coke Light, Coke Zero, Lemon Coke, VanillaCoke, Sprite, Fanta, the Schweppes range of soft drinks, the Hi-C range of

juices etc. In Hong Kong, Swire Beverages has the franchise to manufacture,market and distribute products of The Coca-Cola Company in the factory inShatin.

Company website: http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com

(iii) Health beverages (functional drinks)Recently, Healthworks, Hoi Tin Tong and Hung Fook Tong Holdings Ltd. producea series of so called health drinks which are claimed to be produced according

to traditional Chinese herbal formulation. Apart from Chinese herbal tea, theyalso produce other products including soup, scented tea, etc.

Company website:

Healthworks: http://www.health-wks.com/

Hoi Tin Tong: http://www.hungfooktong.com/aboutus.php

Hung Fook Tong: http://www.hoitintong.com.hk/ch/about.php

(B) Bakery

(i) Garden Company LimitedGarden Company Limited was established in 1926 by Mr. T. F. Cheung and hiscousin Mr. W. O. Wong. In 1931, the central branch moved to a larger storey inSham Shui Po. The factory ran 24 hours per day producing biscuits in the daytime

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and bread and cakes at night. An additional plant was constructed in Sham Tsangin 1974 for the production of buns and sandwich breads.

The products of Garden Company can be divided into ve categories: bread, cake,biscuits, snack and candy. The most famous household brandname product of

Garden Company is Life Bread which was rst introduced in 1960. It is claimedto have high nutritional value, long-lasting freshness and hygienic packaging.Company website: http://www.garden.com.hk/web/index.html

(ii) Wing WahThe business of Wing Wah was started by the setting up of Wing Wah Restaurantin 1950. It then revamped to a company and set up its own manufacturing plantin the 1960s. In the 1970s, Wing Wah established outlets all over Hong Kong.It has also expanded its business internationally by selling mooncakes in UnitedKingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and other Southeast

Asian countries. It provides over 400 products including mooncakes, dried meat,Chinese wedding cakes, wife cakes, wholesome food (e.g. Guilingao, healthdrinks), instant food (e.g. birds nest, Royal Soup) and assorted noodles (e.g.shrimp noodle, spinach noodle).Company website: http://www.wingwah.com/pp_big/WingWah.asp

(C) Dairy Products

(i) NestlNestl is an international food company with headquarters in Switzerland. Itresulted from a merger in 1905 between the Farine Lacte Henri Nestl Company

set up by Henri Nestl to provide infant food products and the Anglo-SwissMilk Company for milk products. Since then Nestl has acquired a number ofcompanies and develop many famous brands to produce various kinds of foodand beverage including Coffee (Nescafe), lemon tea (Nestea), powder drink(Milo), bottled water (Perrier), oat meal (Nesvita), chocolate (Kit Kat) and milkpowder (Nan; Neslac; Nespray; Klim), etc.Company Website: http://www.nestle.com

(ii) Kraft Foods Inc.The company was established by James L. Kraft in 1903 with wholesale cheese

business. It is headquartered in USA. It has then acquired and merged with manyother companies. Nowadays, Kraft Foods is one of the largest international foodand beverage companies. It has more than 180 manufacturing and processingfacilities worldwide. Kraft Foods' core businesses include coffee, cheese anddairy products, biscuits, chocolate and quick meal. Some of their famous brandsinclude Kraft Cheese, Kraft Miracle Whip, Oreo, Danone Chips Ahoy, Pacic,Ritz, Toblerone, Maxwell House etc. Over 40 of their brands are more than 100years old.

Company website: http://www.kraft.com

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(D) Seasoning

Lee Kum Kee

The founder Mr. Lee Kum Sheung started his sauce production business in Nam ShuiVillage in Guangdong Province, China in 1888 which is located at the South Sea coast,

with a rich supply of oysters. This was advantageous for Mr. Lee to produce an oystersauce that became very popular. After the plant in Nan Shui Village was ruined in a rein 1902, Lee Kum Sheung moved to Macau and rebuilt his business. Lee Kum Keesheadquarter was relocated to Hong Kong in 1932 and started to develop overseasChinese market for its product. Today, production plants of Lee Kum Kee can be foundin Hong Kong, Mainland China, USA and Southeast Asia. The modern productionfacilities of Lee Kum Kee are computerised to maintain the standard quality of itssauces. In addition to oyster sauce, there are many other sauces produced by LeeKum Kee Company. Soy sauce, XO sauce, chili sauce, convenience sauces, cookingand dipping sauce and seasonings are some categories of its condiment products.

Company website: http://www.lkk.com

(E) Dim Sum and Noodles

(i) Winner Food Products LimitedThe main brand of Winner Food Products Limited is Doll. The company wasestablished in 1968. It was the subsidiary Nissin Food Products Co. Ltd. andtherefore it has incorporated Japans advanced processing technology andproduct management methods so as to maintain a high quality of food hygieneand safety. Under the brand name Doll, it manufactures various types of foodproducts including instant noodles with various avours, frozen dim sum, frozen

spaghetti and chilled foods (e.g. meat balls).Company website: http://www.doll.com.hk:8080/doll_jsp-bin/main_eng.jsp

(ii) Amoy Food LimitedAt rst, Amoys predecessor, Tao Fa was founded in Xiamen, Fujian Provinceand produced milk and soy sauce in 1908. Amoy was set up in Hong Kong in1928. It started to produce frozen food including dim sum in 1993. In 2001, Amoyrst developed a very popular instant congee called Ding Ding Congee and thencontinued to develop a series of Ding Ding Soup Noodle. It became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the French multi-national group Danone in 1991 and was

acquired by Ajinomoto, which is a multi-national organisation based in Japan, in2006.Company website: http://www.amoy.com/main.html

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13.2.1 External Factors

The following external factors determine the type and nature of company and theproducts to be developed.

(A) Economic environment

Whether our society is a rich or poor one, gaps between different income groupsexist. These affect consumer demands for luxury or necessity foods, convenient orsophisticated preparation for particular culinary art and taste, in the case of food

products.

(B) Ecological environment

People are generally more health conscious than ever before and therefore we seeksafe and healthy food. Organic food is the safer, healthier and as a result the demandfor organic food is ever growing. Promotion of organic agriculture minimizes the health

problems and also results in no capital investment to clean the environment.

There have been concerns over the potential for harm from genetically modied (GM)foods and crops. Most national authorities consider that specic assessments arenecessary to determine the safety of GM foods.

(C) Technological environment

Modern technology is now an integral part of the society today with high-end packageusage increasing rapidly. Sophisticated or advanced machineries and equipment areavailable for food production and manufacture, e.g. non-heat sterilisation technique,nano-technology etc. Attention should be paid to basic issues like collection,segregation and reuse of synthetic packaging material and observation of regulatoryrequirements.

(D) Specifc purposeSome food products are not developed for commercial purpose but rather for somespecic purpose like space mission, military, etc.

13.2.2 Trends in the marketplaceTrends in the market place determine the nal outcome of research and development(R & D) so as to maximise the effect of the environment. A product model is thusgenerated. Following are the current trends that appear to be having a signicant

impact on the research and development of food products.

13.2 Factors to be cons idered in res earch anddevelopment of food products

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(A) Emerging technology in food production, manufacturing

and packaging

(i) Biotechnology like enzymatic conversion, biotechnology in genetically modifyingfoods. The availability of biotechnology in genetically modifying foods provides

the opportunity to develop foods that help optimise health status. For example,potato tubers containing increased amounts of starch. The starch is distributedmore uniformly, resulting in more efcient processing, lower fat absorption andimproved texture.

(ii) Nanotechnology is an enabling technology that has the potential to revolutionisethe food industry. Nanotechnology can be applied to develop nanoscale materialsto controll delivery systems and contaminant detection, to create nanodevices for

molecular and cellular biology.

(iii) Biodegradable packaging material, usually based on renewable-resource materialssuch as plant starches.

(B) Ecologically sustainable production methods

Organic farming can produce food in an environmentally friendly and sustainablemanner and better protect our farmlands and countryside. It does not use syntheticchemical pesticides and fertilisers, relies on shifting cultivation and compost to keepthe soil fertile. Organic farming promotes and enhances health of ecosystem, soilbiological activity and soil fertility.

(C) Health-enhancing foods

The following products surely enjoy excellent market niches:

(i) High-fibre foods have a variety of benefits to our health and therefore anadequate amount is recommended to be ingested daily. There are 2 types ofbre: insoluble and soluble. Insoluble fibre is the type of fibre that cannot bedigested by our bodies, but it provides bulk to the stool to help preventconstipation. It also helps create a sense of fullness, thus it is used in

slimming food products. Our bodies can partially digest soluble fibre. It may

help lower blood cholesterol and the risk of colorectal cancer.

(ii) A functional food is a food that has been manipulated to provide additionalhealth benets. The health-promoting substances are commonly added to anexisting food. For example, iodine is added to salt, grains are enriched withiron and B-vitamins, orange juice is fortied with calcium, or milk is enrichedwith extra calcium.

(iii) Probiotics is a viable microbial food supplement which benecially inuencesthe health of the host. Lactobacillus and bidobacterium are the most common

types of microbes use as probiotics. Probiotics have been used in sour milk anddairy products. Yakult is an example for probiotics.

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(iv) Prebiotics are non-digestible food ingredients selectively increase the populationof probiotics bacterial which are beneficial to the healt h of th e body.Nondigestible oligosaccharides, lactulose, rafnose and xylitol are examples forprebiotics.

(v) Synbiotics is the food supplements combining probiotics and prebiotics to forma synbiotic relationship.

(D) Value-added convenience foods

Value-added convenience foods are worth to be considered to be sold in Hong Kongmarkets, including TV dinner including frozen dishes that are popular in western world,assorted soup packs, and instant noodles with soup sachets but must carry certaininnovative ideas such as new technology to preserve food quality and nutritionalvalue.

(E) Food product marketing practices

The food producer must consider the effects of nutritional labeling on the consumers,which has been established in May 2008.

(F) Form of business of the food industry

Various forms have their own reason of survival, but the trend is advantageous tobigger business operation scale. At present, the forms of business in the local businessenvironment have different characteristics: cottage industry, ofce in Hong Kong withfactory in China, multi-national operation, stock market listed public company. The formof business can be generally divided into sole proprietorship, partnership or privatelimited company, multinational food company.

(i) Sole proprietorshipIt is a business owned and operated by one person. One can establish a soleproprietorship business by obtaining the needed licenses and then beginningoperations. This is a widespread form of business for small food companies likerestaurants, small bakery stores, snack shops etc.

(ii) Partnership

Partnership is an association of two or more persons to carry on as co-owners ofa business for prot. Many food companies seek partnerships all around to buildup their business and establish more different markets.

(iii) Private limited companyA private limited company is often set up for the purpose of conducting a small

business. It is a common form of business in Hong Kong. There are about 500,000private limited companies in Hong Kong. There are several advantages of setting

up a private limited company:

The liability of the shareholders for the company is limited to the amount of

their respective shareholdings only.Any change of shareholders will not affect the existence of the company.

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A company may obtain nance by creating a oating charge, which meansthat a company can charge all its assets in accounts as security to the bankfor a loan granted to the company.

A company is treated as a separated person in law which is not affected by achange in shareholders.

A company is said to have the characteristic of separation of ownership andmanagement.

Many large food companies are in the form of limited companies such as LeeKum Kee Company Limited, Vitasoy International Holding Limited, Lam Soon(Hong Kong) Limited etc. These companies are also operated in a multi-nationallevel.

(iv) Multinational food companyMany Hong Kong local brands have successfully entered overseas markets. The

local leading brands including Garden, Doll, Vitasoy, Amoy, Lam Soon and LeeKum Kee appoint distributors and establish overseas ofces to promote overseassales as well as to receive increased international recognition. For example,Vitasoy Group has spread far beyond Hong Kong and is now selling its productsin more than 30 markets throughout the world including the US, Canada, China,Europe, Papua New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia, Trinidad,Venezuela and Israel.

Figure 13.1 Percentage Sales of Vitasoy in Hong Kong and Overseas Markets

between April 2006 to March 2007

Adapted from Annual Report of Vitasoy International Holdings Ltd. 2006-2007. Availableat: http://www.vitasoy.com/

(G) Globalization of food trade

Many food companies are targeting at marketing their products to the outside world.

Some large rms accomplish their marketing goal by making their products well known

worldwide, like Lee Kum Kee, Nestle, Vitasoy, Kelloggs etc. Their products can be

found in many countries. For example, products of Lee Kum Kee is selling in over 60countries including the US, China, Australia, Japan, Taiwan and Korea. Vitasoy Group

has spread far beyond Hong Kong and now sells its products in more than 30 markets

Hong Kong

North America

Australia & New Zealand

Mainland China

Others62%

16%

10%

9%3%

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Table 13.2 The 12 brands related to food on the 100 top most valuable brands list

2006 rank

1

9

22

23

40

54

60

63

66

67

79

91

Brand name

Coca-cola

McDonalds

Pepsi

Nescafe

Kelloggs

Heinz

KFC

Nestle

Pizza Hut

Danone

Kraft

Starbucks

Country

United States

United States

United States

Switzerland

United States

United States

United States

Switzerland

United States

France

United States

United States

Value (US Million)

67,000

27,501

12,690

12,507

8,776

6,223

5,350

4,932

4,694

4,638

3,943

3,099

Figure 13.3 shows the increase of food and drinks exported from Hong Kong domesticfood industries. Global food trade also increase tremendously in the past few years.China has opened its door to the world in the past few years. This motivates the globaltrading including food and beverage. The food trade between China and Hong Kongwould certainly benet from Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA).CEPA is the rst free trade agreement between the Mainland China and Hong Kong.

All goods originated from Hong Kong importing into the Mainland can enjoy tariff-freetreatment, upon applications by local manufacturers and upon the CEPA rules of origin

being agreed and met. The tariff-free policy helps increase the competitiveness ofHong Kong food products in the Mainland market when compared with goods importedfrom other places.

throughout the world including the US, Canada, China, Europe, Papua New Guinea,

Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia, Trinidad, Venezuela and Israel. According to

a survey of the top 100 global most valuable brands in 2006 (Business Week Online,

http://bwnt.businessweek.com/brand/2006/), there were 12 brands related to food.

These brands can be found almost all over the world. Table 13.2 summaries the rank,

brand name, country and brand value.

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Figure 13.3 Local food and beverage export from Hong Kong during 2006-2008

In global food trade, attention must be paid to the following, including national foodlaws, food and nutrition labels in different countries, permission of food additives, quotaof food trading amongst countries, etc. These would directly affect the production cost

of the food product and the success of the food product to be sold in different countries.Expansion of global food trade in the past few years raises the problems of food safety.Codex Alimentarius Commission has established a set of international standard.

Adopting Codex can eliminate the necessity of one country having to provide othercountries their rationale of the necessity of a measure for protecting human health.

This simplied the global trade of food. Other international standards, for example,Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system and International StandardOrganisation (ISO) are also needed to be incorporated in order to build up the trustinternationally.

13.2.3 Internal Factors

The following internal factors may inuence the research and development of food

products.

(A) Personal expertise

The success of a new product development is highly dependent on the expertise ofthe whole team members. There are generally three major levels of team membersin food production companies that exercise inuence on food product development:(i) management level, (ii) technical level and (iii) sales/marketing level. Managementplays the leading role, providing guidelines to all other staff by correctly judging andweighing all external, internal and marketplace diameters for achieving the right endresult, i.e. develop the right food product. Technical personnel conduct research trial,

monitor the development process, produce the new products and ensure the quality.Sales and Marketing personnel conduct survey to collect consumers feedback andlaunch the new product to full commercialisation.

(Data adapted from Census and Statistics Department, HKSAR)

2100

2000

1900

1800

1700

1600

2006 2007 2008

HK$million

Year

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(B) Production facilities

In order to introduce a new product, the company has to consider whether its production

facilities are sufcient to support the manufacturing of the product. Production facilitiesinclude machineries, electricity, water supply, storage and warehousing facilities etc.

The equipment required for product development at different stages varies from bench-top research to pilot plant trial and then nally to industrial scale. The company shouldclearly identify all the necessary equipment needed for developing the new productbefore the development plan is proceeded. If the product can be produced in existinginstallment and facilities without much disruption of regular production, then the new

product would have higher chance to be introduced. Innovative products usuallyrequire more advanced techniques, so new equipment and plant facilities has to bepurchased, thus increases the capital expenditure of the company. Also, the time usedfor ordering and delivering the new machines and the time used for the staff to get

familiar with the operation of new machines must be taken into account when planning

the development progress.

(C) Financial situation

Food research and new product development is a big investment in food industries,so the nancial situation of the company must be clearly evaluated before any newproduct development plan is proceeded. The company should consider its prot/lossposition so as to assess the amount of money available for research and development.The budget and resources required for carrying the new product development activityshould also be estimated. Budget is a critical factor affecting both the time used todevelop the new product and the extent to which the new product is pre-market tested.Although the rewards for a successful product are great, the cost for failure is also

very high. In 1989, it was estimated that US$54 million is needed to introduce a newproduct. For soft drinks, the cost might even be as high as US$100 million. Failureto develop a new product could be a risk to the company, so it is very important for acompany to set the appropriate level of budget and estimate the level of risk they canbear based on their nancial situation. Financial measures are usually the prots andreturn on investment, which include the time required, would it be over in one, ve orten years is the question that should be considered.

(D) Company image

Company image implies the peoples impression of the company. Company can createa specic image for itself by establishing its mission, vision and values. Company imagebelongs to the psychological asset of the company, which helps build brand loyalty oftargeted consumers. It is the usual practice in product promotion by emphasising itsimage rather than the products. Certainly good image favours the potential marketingand enhances the opportunities for new product development. The company and

distribution environment give its new products an image to the customers. Newproducts often adhere to the company image, for example, if the company imageperceived by the employees and the customers is about good quality, the new product

will be treated as having good quality.

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McDonalds, a fast food restaurant, is trying to promote its image of joy and communitycare. The company often presents magic and educational shows to children in Hong

Kong schools and hospitals. Many children and teenagers feel very happy to eat inMcDonalds. They also become the potential market for the new products. McDonaldsoften produces new happy meal with different toys so as to attract children and

teenagers. Besides, McDonalds is trying to develop a more healthy-eating image inrecent years, so they offer more food choices with higher vegetable contents and non-fried foods such as salad and corn cup. Moreover, McCafe is opened for people whoare more concerned about lifestyle and who want to enjoy a more comfortable andleisure environment. A wide variety of cakes, pastries and mufns, as well as specialtycoffee and tea are offered to these customers.

Lastly, the food producers consider all the above internal factors and consolidate thefavorable ones. Various procedures are underway for product development. Firstly,R&D makes an ideal product based on the initial ideal model. Then, the marketingpeople will make comments and initiate modication of the product based on theirmarketplace study and observations. Finally, the management further adjusts theproduct, by evaluating all the favourable internal factors. The R&D people thus modifythe model in various procedures accordingly. As a result, the developed food product

is manufactured and a product launch is arranged.

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Figure 13.4 Flow of designing and developing a new food product

Identify and select opportunities from external, internal factors and trends inmarketplace for new product development so as to ll the gap of current marketand satisfy customers need.

Generate ideas for lling a gap of the current market or to make improvementsor modications of an existing product.

Carry out market research to nd out if the idea meets the needs of theconsumers.

Carry out a feasibility study based on technical, marketing and nancial

criteria.

Develop prototypes based on the selected idea or concept.

Multiple trials of the product to nd out if the product can be made in the factoryand evaluate the product by sensory evaluation and microbiological tests.

During multiple trials, consumer tests are introduced to help in the modicationof the products. A test market can be used to obtain information on the marketingmethods and their effects on consumer buying behaviour.

Launch the product including advertisement, promotional materials andactivities.

13.2.4 Designing and Developing Food Products

Figure13.4 shows the ow of designing and developing a new food product. The wholedevelopment process may take several months or longer.

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Figure 13.5 Simple mind map for a product of candy

Rose avour Chrysanthemum avour

Use sweeteners

available in food lawto replace sugar

Suitable, not

easy to blockthe esophagus

Flora avour

Different avour Candy

Low sugar Safe to eat

Healthy for elderly

(B) Idea Generation

Idea generation, sometimes also called concept generation, is a process of creating

ideas or concepts for developing new products. Ideas can be generated by studyingexternal and internal factors as well as the trends of the marketplace discussedearlier on, in order to nd out a gap in the current market or to nd out ways of eitherimproving or modifying the current products. For example, a new sugar replacementwhich is claimed to have no calorie and aftertaste appear on the market. Companiesmay consider adding this new food additive in their current products to produce a new

trendy product.

(i) BrainstormingBrainstorming is a useful tool for generating ideas. It is a problem solving activityby a group of people trying to nd out a solution to a specic problem. Duringthe process of brainstorming, many ideas are generated, evaluated and nally asolution will be chosen.

(ii) Mind MapA mind map is a diagram used to note down words, ideas, tasks or other itemslinked to and arranged radially around a central key word or idea. It is a useful

tool in the process of brainstorming. The elements are arranged according to theimportance of the concepts and are organised in the form of groups, branches orareas. The uniform graphic formulation of the semantic structure of information

on the method of gathering knowledge, may aid the recall of existing memories.

(A) Planning

Identify and select opportunities from external, internal factors and trends in marketplacefor new product development so as to ll the gap of current market and satisfy customersneed.

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(C) Market Research

Market research is a process of collecting and analysing information of customersneeds. It helps a company to create its business plan and to nd out if the new productis marketable. Many companies employ special agencies to carry out the market

research for them. There are basically two different ways to carry out market research,i.e. primary and secondary researches.

(i) Primary researchPrimary research involves collecting primary data (rsthand information) aboutthe preferences, buying habits, opinions, and attitudes etc. from the public bytelephone, personal and group interviews, tasting and testing sessions and

questionnaires etc.

(ii) Secondary researchSecondary research involves using existing data or information from referencebooks, magazines, newspapers, industry publications, government reports, tradeassociations, or international conferences etc. Secondary research can be doneprior to primary research. For example, a company wants to develop a newhealthy candy. Using information gained from secondary sources, the companycan learn about the market trend, newly introduced raw materials, buying habitsof customers, cost of similar products etc. Then it can collect opinions from target

customers to nd out if they would buy the new healthy candy at a certain cost.This can help the success of the product.

Table 13.6 shows the comparison between primary and secondary researches.

More specic information can be obtained from primary research rather than fromsecondary research, which is very important consideration for launching a new product

or service.

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Primary research

Focus groups, surveys,

eld tests, interviews orobservation

Gain information from acompanys target groupof customers for a

particular new product

Tailor-made for thecompanys particularneeds. More accurateand specic for thetarget market of thecompany

More expensive

Secondary research

Local libraries, web, books,business publications,magazines and newspapers

F in d o u t ma rk e tinformation for extendingbusiness into newmarkets, adding new

services or product lines

Second-hand information,less accurate, useful and

specic, which may notsuit the particular need of

the company

Less expensive

Source of information

Purpose

Accuracy and

specicity

Expense

Table 13.6 Comparison between primary and secondary research

Table 13.7 is an example of secondary research data from the Census and StatisticsDepartment. It showed that more people of age 25-54 consumed health supplements.This group of people may be willing to pay more for their health. This may become thetarget group for newly developed health food products of a company.

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Table 13.7 Result of a survey concerning persons aged 15 and over who hadtaken health supplements during the twelve months befo repopulation census during February May 2005 by age and sex

Age

group

15-24

25-34

35-44

45-54

55-64

65

Total

No.of

persons

(000)

66.5

74.9

143.1

110.8

60.5

54.7

510.5

%

13.0

14.7

28.0

21.7

11.9

10.7

100.0(39.5)

Rate

14.6

16.2

24.3

19.5

19.0

14.4

18.4

No.of

persons

(000)

87.3

144.1

227.9

168.5

74.3

78.9

781.1

%

11.2

18.5

29.2

21.6

9.5

10.1

100.0(60.5)

No.of

persons

(000)

153.8

219.0

370.9

279.3

134.8

133.7

1291.6

%

11.9

17.0

28.7

21.6

10.4

10.3

100.0(100.0)

Rate

17.6

23.0

29.3

24.5

21.9

16.5

22.8

Remarks: Percentage in parenthesis represents the overall percentage(Adapted from Thematic House Survey Report No.26, Census and Statistics Department, Government of HongKong SAR)

(D) Feasibility study

A feasibility study is an evaluation or analysis of the possible potentials of the proposedfood product idea. A feasibility study provides information to assist decision-makers todetermine whether the idea is feasible or not, or the development process has to be

stopped at this stage.

The feasibility study is based on an extensive research and analysis on nancial andoperational impact. Market research can provide much information on the probablesales, the position in the market, the target group of customers, the possible prices,promotion and market channels of the product. Technical study gives information onthe production processes, probable cost including new instalment of machinery andproduction facilities, raw materials, packaging materials etc. and time for developmentand production of the product.

A series of questions have to be answered during a feasibility study:(i) Can the product be produced by existing facilities?(ii) Are new facilities needed?

Rate

20.8

29.4

33.6

29.5

25.0

18.4

27.1

Male Female Overall

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(iii) Does the manufacturing process have to be invented for the new product? (If so,other questions have to be considered, e.g. the time, cost, manpower, use ofresources etc.)

(iv) Are the required raw and packaging materials available?(v) Are there any other operational considerations particular to the project?

(vi) What is the capital of the project?(vii) Is the price acceptable by the customers?(viii) Is the selling price of the product competitive enough?

(E) Development of prototypes

After justifying the idea, the rst real product, which is called the prototype, is made.A prototype is an example or specimen for trial and market research. Adaptations andmodications can be built in the production process if necessary so as to meet therequirements stated in the product specications.

Product specication should contain all the information and requirements of the product.They are useful in the early development stage as a standard for evaluation and then

used for periodic quality checks afterwards. The product specications should includethe following items:(i) types of food(ii) the recipe or formulation(iii) serving size(iv) processing details(v) descriptions on the quality of the product including sensory, nutrition and other

relevant details

(vi) descriptions on the appearance of the product including size, shape andpackage

The prototype is developed based on the product specication. Judgments can bemade during the prototype development period through consumer testing before massproduction starts. Figure 13.8 shows a simple ow chart of prototype development.

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Figure 13.8 Flow of prototype development

Elementary product prototype

Basic packaging

Consumer testing

Acceptable product prototype

Optimisation

Stepwise variable changes in small area

Aesthetic product design

Complete process design

Market study & test

Optimised product prototype

Scale-up production

(F) Multiple trials and sensory evaluation

(i) Products are tested by sensory evaluation, or so called sensory analysis,which is the study of human response to the products, to determine if the

products are acceptable or not. Judgments of a trial product is usually based onthe sensory qualities including avour, texture, appearance, smell or sound (e.g.the loudness of the sound when biting potato crisps) of the product. Figure 13.9shows a simple ow chart for developing a product through sensory evaluation.

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Figure 13.9 Simple ow chart of sensory evaluation stage

Concept

Develop samples

Sensory evaluation

(sensory testing)

Accept

Reject

modify

In a sensory evaluation, the following questions are usually asked:

What is the perception of the product according to its characteristics?

Is there any difference between the product and another one?

How acceptable is the product or which product people prefer?

(ii) Types of sensory tests

Discrimination Test

Discrimination tests are used to conrm suspected small differences betweenproducts and to select potential candidates for descriptive test (i.e. thosecandidates who have high accuracy rate in discrimination tests). Discriminationtests can be done by many different methods. Paired difference test, duo-triotest and triangle test are the three main methods which are usually used.

Paired Difference Test

Paired difference test is used to nd if there is a difference in a specicattribute between two samples. During paired difference test, panelists aregiven two coded (usually are three digit random numbers) samples and theyare required to choose one of the samples with higher level of a specicattribute. For example, Which sample is darker, sweeter, softer etc. Usuallytwo kinds of questions are asked in paired difference test: 1) which one doyou like the most? (preference question) and 2) which one is softer / harder?(specic attribute question).

Duo-Trio Test

In duo-trio test, three samples are given to panelists. One of the samples isidentied as the reference. The panelists are asked to choose between theother two samples which is the same as the reference.

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Triangle Test

In triangle test, three samples are given to panelists. Two of the samples

are the same and the remaining one is different. The panelists are asked tochoose the odd sample. Triangle test is better than paired difference teststatistically when differences are small because the panelists have only one-

third of a chance that can make it correct by guessing while they have a halfchance to guess it correctly in paired difference test or duo-trio test.

Descriptive Test

Descriptive tests are used to measure the type and intensity of particular

attributes of a food product. These tests require panelists to describe theproduct in terms of its characteristics and to measure the intensity of those

characteristics using scaling methods.

Ranking test

Ranking test is used to sort a series of the intensity of a particular attribute of afood product. Ranking test is usually used in market research to ask consumersto sort the order of preference of a food product. In ranking test, a set of codedsamples arranged randomly is presented to the panelists. The panelists are then

asked to rank them in order according to a particular attribute and a designatedsequence. Table 13.10 shows an example of the result of a ranking test.

1

2

3

4

5

Rank sums

121

2

2

3

1

2

10

324

3

4

4

3

4

18

231

1

1

1

2

1

6

145

4

3

2

4

3

16

The results show that sample 324 and 145 are similar. Sample 231is different from samples 121, 324 and 145.

Remarks:

Ranks 1

Extremely sweet

2

Very sweet

3

Sweet

4

A little sweet

5

Not sweet

Table 13.10 Result of a ranking test for a candy product

Panelistsno.

Samples

Code

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Rating tests

Rating tests provide panelists with a dimension or a scale to evaluate the

magnitude of a particular attribute. The panelists are asked to rate a particularattribute or preference for a food product on a numerical or verbal scale.

Numerical scale

Verbal scale

Circle the number that describes the hardness of the biscuit:

Softest 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 hardest

Place a check next to the appropriate statement:Like Extremely

Like very much

Like Moderately

Like Slightly

Neither like nor dislike

Dislike slightly

Dislike Moderately

Dislike Very much

Dislike Extremely

(G) Consumer testing

In consumer test, opinions and attitudes of consumers are collected from a group of

representatives chosen from the target market. Useful information is collected for thedevelopment of a new product. The design of consumer tests varies according to the

type of the new product and the amount of market research carried out in the previousstage.

(i) Monadic and paired comparisonMonadic and paired comparison product tests are two examples of consumertesting designs. In monadic testing, a single sample is presented to the chosen

group. They are then asked to evaluate the product so as to collect informationincluding purchase interest and rating of particular attributes of the product. Inpaired comparison product tests, the panelists are given two products sequentially.They are asked to rate and state their preferences to the products after tastingthe two products.

(ii) Monadic product testing

Monadic product testing is useful in prototype development. It is also preferablewhen there is no direct or obvious competitor. It provides more basic informationand overall appeal of the new product as well as the relative information only

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according to the respondents personal judgement to the product. Monadicproduct testing is also regarded as the real world, since it replicates the fact

that people consume one product at a time in daily life.

(iii) Paired comparison product testing

Paired comparison product testing is used to call for a winner from a series ofproducts. It is because more than one product is provided to a single group,differences between products are magnied for easier detection. When informationis needed for competition, this test will become useful. This testing design isalways used as an advertising strategy.

If the information on the effects of the marketing methods on the customer buyingbehaviour is needed, a test market is required. Local launching of the product insupermarkets, restaurants or other relevant retail outlet is one of the marketingtechniques to test the response of the market to the new product. Interviewing thecustomers who have bought or not bought the product to get information of theacceptance, competitive difference, uniqueness, aesthetic aspect, brand attitudeand product value. Questions of whether if the consumers will buy the productagain, the reasons why they buy the new product, how they use the new productand their opinions on the new product can also be asked so as to get informationon the consumer reactions and buying behaviour in the test market.

Table 13.11 Comparison between monadic and pared comparison product testing

Number of samples

Objectives

Purpose

Monadic product testing

One

To check the acceptabilityof one product

Useful for prototypedevelopment

Paired comparisonproduct testing

Two or above

To compare between testalternatives

Useful for planningadvertising strategies

(H) Marketing plan

A marketing plan is a written document that lists the details of the necessary actions toachieve one or more marketing objectives. A product should have its own characteristicsand specicities to meet the needs of the consumers. Marketing can make use of thesecharacteristics and specicities to attract people to buy the product.

When marketing a product, there are four main factors have to be considered, whichare known as 4Ps:

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(i) ProductWhat kind of product can meet the marketing need?

(ii) PriceWhat shall be the selling price range in the specic market environment?

(iii) PlaceWhere shall the product be sold? Place involves market segmentation: themarket can be segmented according to various differentiation, such as geographic,gender, age, education level, income level, etc of targeted potential buyers.

(iv) PromotionHow to educate the potential buyers to initial purchase desire? Tailor-madepromotional strategy is then assumed, like advertisement.

Advertisement can help the marketing of the product. Advertising companies canhelp food industries to work out ways to promote and advertise the product. Throughadvertisement, it can tell people the existence of the new product and give reasonsfor them to buy it. Advertisement should reach the target group of customers throughvarious channels like television, radio, newspapers and magazines, at the cinema andposters. The way of advertisement depends on the target groups and the advertising

budget for the whole project. For example, if the product is a snack for young teenagers,advertisements can be placed in teenage magazines, webpages, and televisions whichare the media they may reach.

During the development of a new product for sale, the following questions about the

consumers have to be considered: Who are the customers (the target group)? What are their key characteristics? How are they different from the other group of people? What are their needs and wants? What are their expectations of the product? What are their special requirements and perceptions? What are their impressions to the organisation and its products? What are their attitudes? What are their buying intentions?

13.2.5 Stages in the production of a food product

(A) Product life cycle

It is claimed that every product has a life cycle. Product life cycle is the period starting

from the initial product design including research and development to the withdrawal

of the product from the marketplace. There are ve main stages namely development,introduction, growth, maturity and decline in a product life cycle.

(i) DevelopmentIt is the incubation stage of the product life cycle. At this stage, there is no saleand the food company prepares to introduce the product.

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(ii) IntroductionIt is the period of introducing a new product from the point of conceptualisation

to the point of introducing to the market. The food company which invents theproduct may have a period of monopoly until competitors start to copy or improve

the original idea. Sales at this stage are low as the customers are getting aware

of the new product and nding out how it will benet them. Therefore muchadvertisement has to be used to raise the customers awareness and interest tothe product.

(iii) GrowthSales start to grow in the growth period if the product is successful. Customers

become aware of the product and its benets. Once the product becomes aregular need to the customers, the sales will increase further. Competitors will

enter the market at the later part of the growth stage. At this stage, there maybe price competition and the food company has to nd some ways to convincecustomers that its product is the best among the market. The goal of the companyis to attract and gain customers appreciation and try to increase sales.

(iv) MaturitySales climb to a peak at this stage. The sales may continue to grow at this stage,but at a much slower pace. As the brand awareness is strong at this stage, lessadvertisement is needed. Competition may result in decreased market share orreduced price. The products of the competitors may become very similar at thisstage. Therefore, in order to maintain market share and extend the product lifecycle, the company has to persuade customers to use its product continuously

and not to use that of its competitors.

(v) DeclineEventually, the sales of the product may begin to decline due to the saturationof the market, technologically obsolete, or change of customers preference.However, if the product has developed its brand loyalty, it can be protable for alonger period. For some products, they are very popular on the market for a longperiod and require only a few adjustments along the period, e.g. oyster saucefrom Lee Kum Kee Company Ltd., Vitasoy etc.

The length of each stage varies from product to product. Not all products go through each

of the stages. Some may go through introduction stage and then decline. Nonetheless,the product life cycle concept helps marketing managers to predict the challenges theymay face and then plan their marketing strategies. It is also useful to monitor the salesfrom time to time and compare with those products with similar life cycle.

(B) Research and development

After recognising the need for developing a new product, the next step is to identifyand specify the potential types of product. A product development team is formed at

this stage. The team will discuss amongst themselves in order to generate ideas and

work out the product specication. A series of researches are conducted to support the

specication.

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Researches are done before the ideas are put together into a new product. Researchesinclude investigating competitors products, ingredients, recipes, dietary needs, foodsafety, methods of manufacturing, appropriate packaging, possible additives used,possibility of using new technologies, market trend etc.

From a pool of ideas, one to two ideas which are considered to be worthwhile canbe chosen for further development. Product development involves constructing adetailed plan concerning the recipe, avour, texture, size, shape, colour, packaging,manufacturing equipment involved etc.

Following are the steps for carrying out research which result in a design

specication:(i) Find out the needs of the target group for both the food product and packaging

by questionnaires and surveys.(ii) Collect information associated with the product including info rmation on

packaging, food and nutrition labelling, industrial production methods, freezingand chilling properties, HACCP, etc. All the information helps in the design of the

product.

(iii) Evaluate existing food products against the identied needs of the target group.Find out if reconstructing the existing products (disassemble and reassembleexisting production facilities and packaging) can meet the needs.

(iv) Collect information on processing techniques for large-scale production.(v) Analyse all the research results before developing a detailed specication so as

to make sure that quality of the product is under control.

After all the information is collected and a design specication is nished, a prototype

can be produced. The sample is further improved by successive sensory evaluationuntil it reaches an acceptable level.

(C) Trial and piloting

After the product is optimised to an acceptable stage, the recipe is scaled-up in quantityfor the rst production trial run. This is the transfer of production from bench-top toindustrial scale. The scaled-up recipe must be the same in proportions as that in thesample made in the development stages. At this stage, industrial machineries are used

for the production. Processing details, which are usually presented as a ow chart, and

critical control points are put into the specication for the product at this stage. Theproduct must be tested in the trial run for many things like micro-organisms, foreignbodies, acidity levels, weight and proportion of main ingredients, sensory qualities, etc.

A hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) matrix is a useful tool for identifying,evaluating and controlling hazards which may affect the quality of food based on thefollowing seven principles according to a guideline from National Advisory Committee

on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF):

(i) Conduct a hazard analysis. A HACCP team is set up to analyse and identi fypotential hazards that may occur in the production process.

(ii) Determine the critical control points (CCPs). CCP is a point, step, or procedure

at which control can be applied and a food safety hazard can be prevented,eliminated, or reduced to acceptable levels.

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(iii) Establish critical limits for each identied CCP.(iv) Establish monitoring procedures for each CCP. Set up procedures for using the

data from monitoring to adjusting the process and control under the limit set.

(v) Establish corrective actions to be taken when monitoring indicates that there isa deviation from the critical limit occurred.

(vi) Establish verification procedures to verify the effectiveness of the HACCPsystem.(vii) Establish record-keeping and documentation procedures so that records can be

tracked for any incidents.

A ow chart of production procedure is constructed prior to identifying the CCPs. Figure13.12 shows a ow chat on how to decide whether a step of the production design is aCCP or not and Figure 13.13 shows an example of a ow chart of beef stew with criticalcontrol points. In the procedures of making beef stew, the steps of cooking, coolingand reheating has the chance of getting contamination and is irreversible. Therefore,control is important at this stage.

Sometimes, some properties of the product from scale-up production may deviatefrom the sample. For example, sauce may become too thick after going through themachinery. The process must then be modied to meet the expected quality of thefood product. In this case, the viscosity of the sauce should be reduced to an acceptedlevel.

The product may be put on a test market before the nal adjustment of the productand packaging. That means it can be advertised and put on sale in a small area asa product trial. Results of sales and customers reactions to the product are recorded

for evaluation of the potential of the product and for deciding to promote it in otherareas. The product may be withdrawn at this stage if poor responses are received fromcustomers.

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Figure 13.13 Decision tree for nding critical control point (CCP)

Q1. Is there any control

measures suitable for theidentied hazard?

Q2. Does the step eliminate

or reduce the hazard to an

acceptable level?

Q3. Could contamination atthis step occur or increase

to unacceptable level?

Q4. Will a subsequent step,prior to consumption of the

food, eliminate or reduce

the hazard to an acceptablelevel?

Is control necessary

for safety at this step?

Modify the step,process of product

Not a CCP

This is a CCP

NO

NO

NO

NO

NO

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

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Figure13.14 Flow chart with indication of critical control point (CCP) in the

production of beef stew

Ingredients:

prime rib, vegetables, beef stock,roux (our/butter)

Storage:

vegetables, beef stock and butter (4 or below) our (keep dry)

Preparation:

Wash hands, wash ingredients, cut ingredients intosuitable sizes, saut vegetables, add prime rib andbeef stock

Cooking:

Add roux when boiling Add seasonings

Cook to 74 or above

Cooling:

Cool from 60 to 20 within 2 hoursand then to 4 within 4 hours

Reheat:

Reheat to 74 or above

Serve:

Serve at 60 or above

CCP

CCP

CCP

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(D) Production

After solving all the problems in the trial runs, it can be put to regular production. For afood production system, there are three basic elements denoted as input, process andoutput. Input is everything that put into the production, which includes ingredients, the

specications, packaging materials, energy, equipment, manpower, etc. Process is theevents going on to make the product from the input. Output includes ultimate product,any wastage or by-product materials for recycling. A production system may be brokendown into sub-systems. Each sub-system can have its own output which becomesthe input of the next sub-system. For example, for a bakery product, the preparationof dough is the rst sub-system. The dough then becomes the input of the next sub-system where the bakery product is made. The information of sales should be passedback to the system so that the ingredients and dough preparation can be adjusted tothe right amount. This is called feedback. Figure 13.14 shows a simple owchart forthe production of Chinese preserved sausage (Lap-mei).

Time charts is useful for planning the whole procedure for food production. Time charts

list the order and the time allowance including the start and end of the procedure

for producing a food product. This is important to ensure that distribution of the foodproduct is on time.

Control and feedback are important in a food production system. This can help ensurethe right quantity and consistent quality. This also ensures that the production operatesefciently and any fault can be detected and corrected immediately. Hence anything inthe production is kept under the food regulations so that it is safe to be consumed. Someequipment can be used for monitoring the process. Thermometers or thermocouples

can be used for monitoring heating and freezing system, e.g. oven, boiler, freezer,etc. Metal detectors can be used for detecting foreign metals that have accidentallydropped into the product. Some sensors are specially designed for checking particularparameters including colour or thickness of a product, size of a product, packagedvolume of a beverage, etc.

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Figure 13.15 Flow Chart of Lap-mei Production (Adapted and modified from

FEHD, HKSAR Government)

INPUTPork or duck liver, other ingredients,equipment, energy (people and fuel),specication of products to be made

PROCESS

SUBSYSTEMS Clean and cut

Add chopped

fat meat

Add seasonings

and additives

Allow stabilisation andthorough diffusion of

cutting ingredients

Pour into casings

Puncture

Allow open air

drying and hot

air drying

OUTPUT Chinese preservedsausage

(distribution andserving)

FEEDBACK

Amount of

ingredients

needed

Special

orders from

retailers

Sales guresfrom years

Preparation of

chopped fat meat

Preparation

of seasonings

and additives

including salt,sugar, wine and

sodium nitrite

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N ot for S ale

The copyright of the m aterials in this booklet belongs to the E ducation B ureau. The

m aterials can be used by schools only for educational purpose. W ritten prior perm ission

of the E ducation B ureau m ust be sought for other com m ercial uses.

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food booklet 13 eng

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