Orlando, FL – February 27, 2025
The University of Massachusetts Amherst emerges as the winner of ASB’s highly competitive Product Development Competition! Their innovative entry, HoneyCrunch, not only demonstrated exceptional creativity but also met the highest standards of quality and safety.
This year’s competition, sponsored by the National Honey Board, challenged student teams to develop an innovative grab-and-go bakery product featuring honey as the primary sugar ingredient.
The winning team, comprising of juniors Madeline Murphy and Nicholle Tan, created a fresh take on brownie brittle, featuring the complementary flavors of honey and lavender. The judges were impressed by their originality and innovation among an impressive array of submissions, showcasing creativity, quality, and market potential.
After months of rigorous development and evaluation, the three finalist teams demonstrated exceptional creativity, technical problem-solving, and industry relevance in their product designs. A distinguished panel of industry judges assessed the finalists based on key factors such as product innovation, formulation, process scalability, food safety, and market viability.
The 2nd place winner, with their product prOATS!, is Cornell University. Their product is a bite-sized cookie filled with peanuts, oats, and honey, plus a kick of caffeine. In 3rd place is Oregon State University who developed Garden Box Cookies, a crunchy cookie topped with a caramel honey drizzle.
The winning team has earned the top share of the $20,000 scholarship prize pot, furthering ASB’s mission to support the next generation of baking industry professionals. The competition has provided these students with a unique platform to connect with leading industry experts, gain real-world product development experience, and showcase their talent on a national stage.
ASB extends its congratulations to all the finalists for their hard work, dedication, and innovative contributions to the baking industry. Their participation in this competition highlights the future of baking, driven by fresh ideas and cutting-edge advancements.
Thank you to all participants for your contributions, and we encourage everyone to continue pursuing excellence in the field of baking product development.
For media inquiries, contact Sarah Day, Director of Education, at sday@asbe.org.
