Show us what you can bake.

The purpose of ASB’s Product Development Competition is to facilitate the development of innovative bakery products for the wholesale manufacturing industry.

The 2025 Product Development Competition is sponsored by the National Honey Board.

Entries are due each November.  Visit the following tabs for complete details.

General Competition Rules

Theme:  

Busy Bees – Create a new, innovative, bakery food product for the grab-and-go market, featuring honey as the first sugar ingredient.   

Entry Requirements: 

Key Ingredient: Honey must be a highlighted ingredient. 

Base Ingredient(s): Products should be made using a grain or pseudo-grain flour (also including pulse and legume flours). The product should start as dough or batter before being cooked into its final form. 

Grab-and-go Ready: Suitable for sale in quick service restaurants, convenience stores, grocery store end caps, drive-thrus, or similar establishments.  

Shelf Life: The product must have a minimum shelf life of 14 days. 

All serving sizes, claims, and labeling must be in line with the current FDA and/or USDA regulations.   

Guidelines: 

  • Ensure your product is perfect for busy consumers on the go. 
  • Highlight honey’s flavor and benefits in your product. 
  • Storage conditions must follow similar products on the market (e.x. cookies, hard pretzels, hotdog buns are shelf stable at room temperature, but soft pretzels are sold frozen).  

Judges will be evaluating the potential success of product entries in today’s market, scalability, and technical problem-solving skills used in product development.  

In order to control the emphasis and fairness of the competition, the following limitations will be enforced: 

  • Competitors must be student teams consisting of between two and four students comprised of undergraduate and/or graduate students. 
  • Competitors must be full-time degree seeking students with less than three years of industry experience. 
  • Competitors can participate in multiple years. 
  • No team members can have been a PDC finalist at BakingTECH in consecutive years. (if you were a previous finalist and would like to still be involved, join the Product Development Competition Committee! Please email sday@asbe.org)
  • Judges will not award extra points for the size of sensory panels or source of panelists. The purpose of this rule is to eliminate the possibility of teams earning extra points for their ability to collect more sensory data due to a larger number of team members. 
  • Since the focus of this competition is on baking skills in product development, judges will not give points for the quality of package graphics or other advertising material. However, student teams are encouraged to be creative and encompass modern packaging technology. 
  • Penalties for violations will be determined by the judges. Judges will communicate their decision, which will be considered final, in a prompt fashion to the ASB staff liaison at the end of the competition. 
  • Disqualification:
    • Failure to comply with the rules will lead to the loss of points and/or disqualification 

Eligibility

Each student team member must be registered as a full-time student at the university he or she is representing at the time of the competition and through the Finals on February 18, 2025. Each student on the team must provide a letter from their advisor stating that they are currently enrolled and taking classes.   

All students entering the competition must be a registered ASB member (student membership is $25). Student registration can be completed on the ASB website (www.asbe.org).  For more information regarding membership, please contact membership@asbe.org.  

Entries must be the student’s original work. Professors may be consulted and referenced but may not be a major contributor to the actual work. 

You must attend a school within the mainland US. 

Projects from product development classes are eligible in the competition. 

MS, Ph.D., or summer internship related projects are NOT eligible in the competition. 

Preliminary Proposals

Only email submissions will be accepted.  Please submit all emails to ASB Director of Education Sarah Day (sday@asbe.org). Entrants must include the following information in the same email: 

Email body:  

  1. Name of the school
  2. Name of the entry (product name)
  3. Advisor’s name and contact information
  4. Sponsor companies, donors of goods, services, or money (if applicable) 

Attachments: 

  1. Preliminary proposal as a PDF (no identifying information included such as names or school within the PDF proposal)
  2. References as a separate PDF document
  3. Cover Letter from faculty member listing student names and verifying the originality of work and adherence to the competition rules
  4. Application Form, including team members’ names, email and ASB membership numbers. Download Form Now.  

 

Failure to forward the above information will result in ineligibility. An acknowledgement email will be sent. 

Teams must submit their preliminary proposal electronically in PDF format and supplementary information by email to Sarah Day (sday@asbe.org) by November 8th at 11:59pm CST. Proposals received after November 8th will not be accepted. 

The preliminary proposal  

The report must be typed, double-spaced 12-point Garamond font with 1” margins. It must be submitted electronically. Use your creativity to format this proposal in a way that showcases your product’s unique attributes and market position. 

Do not include the name of the university or the team names anywhere in the preliminary proposal PDF. Names of sponsor companies, any university, students, or other indication of team location are NOT acceptable in the report, or on the product picture as these will be seen by the judges. VIOLATION WILL RESULT IN DISQUALIFICATION OF SUBMITTED PROPOSALS. 

1. Title page  
  • There is no specific required format for the title page (title page is not included in the page limit), though it should include the title of report and dateDo not include any other identifying information on the title page, such as the name of the university or team member names. 
2. Supporting pages  
  • may not exceed five (5) pages, not including the title page, the page for single photograph, and the appendix.  Think about including information such as:
    • Product Description  
    • Process Description including scale-up  
    • Technical Problem Solving  
    • Food Safety/Shelf Life  
    • Originality  
    • Literature/trend data  
    • Marketing
3. Image  
  • Include a color photograph of the proposed product in the preliminary proposal. The photograph should be inserted into a single sheet and does not count toward the page limit.
4. Appendix 
  • Process flow diagram 
  • HAACCP 
5. References 
  • All references cited within the proposal will be referred to with a number in or at the end of the sentence in which the reference was used. The list of references (which are not included in the five (5) page limit) must be submitted as a separate PDF document with the preliminary proposal. If a problem arises with reference credibility a judge may contact the Product Development Chair for verification. 
6. Cover Letter
  • A separate cover letter from the Department Head or a professor, verifying originality of work and the team’s compliance with the competition rules is to be submitted as a separate PDF document with the preliminary proposal. 

Additional images throughout the report are optional but will count toward the total page count.  

Evaluation of Preliminary Proposals

Scoring will be determined by the Product Development Committee. Each entry will be scored on a basis of 100 points, with the points to be distributed as shown here: 

Preliminary Proposal Evaluations

Product Description                                      10 points

Process Description including scale up     15 points

Technical Problem Solving                          20 points

Food Safety/Shelf Life                                   15 points

Originality                                                       20 points

Literature/trend data                                    10 points

Marketing                                                        10 points

100 points total

The Product Development Competition Committee will select a maximum of three (3) finalists.
All competing teams will be informed of only their respective scores and any Product Development Committee’s comments.

Finalists

Finalists will be announced on November 22, 2024. All team leaders will receive an email informing them of their competition status.  

Responsibilities of finalists include the preparation of the following, with details below: 

  • Final written proposal 
  • 1-minute promotional video that will serve as the introduction to your BakingTECH presentation 
  • 10 minute team presentation on stage to include presentation slides 
  • Display of their entry for a poster session at BakingTECH 2025
  • Samples of their product for the three (3) judges and Executive Director to taste 

Finalist Evaluation

Finalists will be scored on a basis of 300 points, distributed as follows:

Final Written Proposal  75 points 

Promotional Video         25 points 

Live Presentation           75 points 

Poster Display                25 points 

Product Sample             100 points 

Final Written Proposal

The maximum number of pages for the final written proposal is ten (10). This number INCLUDES proposal body text, process flow diagram, references and appendices. It does NOT include the one (1) title page and the one (1) photograph page. 

The report must be typed, double-spaced, 12-point Garamond font with 1” margins on white paper. Must be submitted electronically as a PDF.

The title page, for which there is no specific required format, must include the title of the proposal and date. A list of donors, and other contributors that assisted the team should be listed ONLY on the title page. 

Insert a color photograph of the product on a single sheet of the report. This page does not count as part of the 10 pages. Additional images throughout the report are optional and will count as part of the 10-page report. 

References should be added at the end of the proposal. The teams’ anonymity is no longer required.  

Product Description                             15 points
Originality                                              10 points
Process Description                             20 points
Safety/Shelf Life                                   10 points
Profitability                                            10 points
Marketing                                               10 points

Final Written Proposal Evaluation:  75 points total

Areas that may be covered in the final proposal are listed below. These are only suggestions. You may include other areas. Remember, thoroughness is important, but originality is highly encouraged! Be sure to cover all areas according to the allotted written proposal points above.

Product description

Product description/use
Product formulation and ingredient functionality
Market potential
Competitive framework
Sensory/ Consumer tests
Shelf-life estimation
Price/cost evaluation
Package selection and basis for selection
Nutrition Label 

Process description

Process description and basis for selection
How product would be scaled for industrial production
Process flow diagram
Process limits
Operating cost
Capital investment estimate
Patent status (apply, infringe, license)

Food safety

Food Safety evaluation with respect to formulations, functionality, and processing
Legal implications of the product (ingredient labeling)
Hazard Analysis – Critical Control Points (HACCP)
Good Manufacturing Processes (GMPs)
Home use – safety hazard?
State Regulations
Federal Regulations
FDA, USDA, OSHA, EPA, etc. regulations 

Promotional Video

Finalists will develop a one (1) minute promotional video that will be posted on the ASB website and social media pages. The video will also be used as an introduction to the on-stage presentation at BakingTECH 2025 conference and should be an exciting, engaging and informative video that captures the essence and uniqueness of your product. 

  • Clearly present the product, showcasing its main features and functionality. 
  • Highlight what makes your product unique or better than existing solutions. 
  • Ensure your video has good visual and audio quality for a professional presentation. 
  • Keep the video concise and within the 1-minute limit.  

This is not enough time to go over everything included in the written summary, so use the video as a way to succinctly sell your product’s key attributes. It will be judged on quality, communicationvisual appeal, intrigue, and overall quality of presentation skills. 

Video Presentation Evaluation:  25 points

Live Presentation

  • Finalists will give a 10-minute presentation during the ASB Annual Conference BakingTech 2025. The conference is being held at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld, Florida from February 1518, 2025. The presentation will be given during the conference on the main stage. 
  • Presentation by a maximum of two (2) student team members.  
  • A PowerPoint presentation is required utilizing a template provided by the Committee.  
  • Obviously this is not enough time to go over everything included in the written summary, so use the oral presentation as a way to succinctly sell your product’s key attributes. It will be judged on quality, organization, communication, interest generated, and overall presentation skills. 

Oral Presentation Evaluation:  75 points

Poster Displays

Finalists will also present their product development ideas in a poster session at BakingTECH.  The content rules for the written report also apply to the poster display. 

An 8 ft. wide by 4ft. high (32 sq. ft. display area) poster board will be available for you to display your product information. The panels can be divided up however a team chooses as long as it fits the allotted poster space (4′ high × 8′ wide). 

Judges will visit posters in a random order. Judges may ask questions to any or all of the team members present during this time period. 

Note: Product development teams are not allowed to provide food samples to the general public at the poster session, or at any time during the Annual Meeting. Teams are encouraged to have display samples for viewing. Table-top for display purposes only.  

The poster display will be graded on the effectiveness of product presentation, organization and quality of information, inclusion of process description, and ability of the poster and team to sell the product idea to fellow bakers. 

Poster Display Evaluation:  25 points

Product Sampling

Each team will send each judge (3 judges total) one sample of their product shipped by Friday January 24, 2025 The names and addresses of the judges will be provided mid-December.

Product Sample Evaluation:  100 Points

Q&A with Judges

Each team will have an online Q&A session with the judges in early February.  The exact time will be communicated in mid-December.  Each member of the team is required to participate.  Each team will be allocated 15 minutes.  

This is a compulsory, but not scored, part of the final to allow judges to introduce themselves and ask clarifying questions based on the product and processes. 

BakingTECH 2025 Schedule

BakingTECH 2025 is February 15 – 18 2025 at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld.  Travel and meal expenses will be paid for the Finalists. 

  • Teams will receive a schedule of PDC meetings and events to attend during BakingTECH. 
  • Teams are encouraged to attend as many General and Technical Sessions as their schedule permits. 

Items to be completed for entry in Product Development Competition:

  • Check ASB student member status for team.
  • Check preliminary proposal format.
  • Submit a preliminary proposal (PDF document) along with references, cover letter, and application form to sday@asbe.org via email by November 8th by 11:59 pm CST

Items to be completed for Product Development Competition Finalists:

  • Check final written proposal format.
  • Prepare and ship product samples by Friday, January 24, 2025.  
  • Submit a final written proposal (in .doc and converted to PDF document) and the 1-minute promotional video presentation to sday@asbe.org by Monday, January 27, 2025. 
  • Prepare the Poster and Live Presentation for BakingTech 2025 Feb 15-18 2025. 

Failure to comply with any of the rules of the competition may result in penalization of teams, including disqualification at the discretion of the judges and the competition Chair.

Awards – $20,000 in total

1st prize: $2,500 scholarship for each team member
2nd prize: $1,500 scholarship for each team member
3rd prize: $1,000 scholarship for each team member

Winners will be announced during BakingTECH on Tuesday, February 18, 2025.  All Finalist team members must be present. 

Questions can be sent to ASB Director of Education Sarah Day (sday@asbe.org).

They will then be forwarded to the Product Development Committee for a response. 

Product Development Competition Finalists
2024
See past videos of Product Development Competition Finalists
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Devanshu Mehta

Devanshu Mehta

Member Since 2019

Scientist, R&D

Impossible Foods

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As a Food Science PhD student at the University of Florida, one day my colleague introduced us to the Product Development Competition. From there on we went as finalists to BakingTech. It gave us a perfect platform to expose ourselves to the industry and was the most inviting and inclusive food conference in the USA by far. BakingTECH was a place to learn everything about baking, network, and create connections that I am still grateful for.