Final Phase Food Innovation Management
Bachelor of Food Technology
Career opportunities
There will always be work in the food sector. Consumers want a wider variety; governments impose increasingly exacting requirements. As a Food Technologist you are trained to be allocated a position within the food sector in high executive positions with a strong technological component. It concerns a broad scale of posts, within which the specialisation Food Innovation Management focuses on the interface of technology with commerce and more specially to the position of product developer. The key task of the product developer is the development of new foods and the renewal of already existing foods.
This task will be carried out mostly on a project basis and within a multidisciplinary team. In order to carry out this task adequately you must be able to speak the language of the marketing expert, and the language of the technology expert as well – and thus be in an excellent position to build bridges between the sector’s various specialisations. You constantly must weigh up: technological possibilities, demands of the market and business goals. For this both technological and commercial knowledge and skills are needed. In addition you must be creative, persistent, innovative, result oriented and be able to work on a project basis.
From the multi-disciplinary character of the position the career can develop in different directions, both towards specialisation (for example packing expert) and towards management positions. Like earlier graduates, you may work as a product developer, product manager or an innovation manager, or you can apply for a job as a commercial technologist. Many of our graduates work for major food-producers such as Unilever, Heinz, and Mars; many others work for a wide range of medium-sized firms in the industry like Droste, Mora or Campbells soup.
Esther Borkent from the Netherlands
Product Developer at Cargill Juice and Beverage Applications
"When I had finished my final project at Heinz, one of the Dutch food producers, I saw that Cargill in Amsterdam was looking for a product developer. So that is where I went next, starting out as a technical trainee. I am now a senior product-development manager. My work involves developing new drinks - fruit-based and otherwise - to meet worldwide demand. I work on various projects, developing and supporting production, and providing our international team with technical assistance. Other parts of this work involve sensory research, the generation of new marketing concepts, and the development of related products for presentation on the market.
To me, there is no doubt about the links between my current work and the training I received at Van Hall Larenstein. Some subjects from the curriculum are fully woven into my everyday life - especially things like marketing, process technology, sensory research, consumer behaviour, communication, and technical product knowledge. But you learn most about the products and production processes during the work itself. Foreign languages are very important - and in an American company, English is essential, of course. I am still learning new things about the products, technology, and communication, every day."
"The satisfied expressions when people enjoy your product."