Executive Summary
The aim and objective of the report is to conduct a thorough analysis of Coho Salmon Cake as food product manufactured on large scale business setting. The main finding is that the product appeals to several small market segments with low level of consumer awareness about such an alternative. Therefore, the food product is reliant on extensive marketing and demand-sensitive manufacturing processes in order to ensure flexibility and adaptability to ever-changing market shifts.
Introduction
The introduction of new products to the market is critical to the company’s success. For the most part, introducing a new product significantly impacts the prices and quality of existing products. Several factors must be aligned to successfully implement the entire product development process (Kalpana et al., 2019). To begin with, it is necessary to specify the responsibilities of each participant in the creation process (Chazelas et al., 2020). It is important to note that the selected and proposed food item will be a salmon pastry named Coho Salmon Cake. Food quality is assessed in flavor, color, texture, and taste. The aim and the objective of the given food product development analysis will be to provide consumers with a healthier and tastier alternative to meat-based products. In addition, Coho salmon is highly expensive, and thus, the proposed manufacturing process seeks to make to deliver the seafood efficiently and at an affordable price.
The innovative aspect of the pastry will be rooted in the unique cooking and preparation process, which will preserve the benefits of the seafood and retain its special taste while delivering it in an interesting form. This lays the foundation for the development of food through the design and implementation of an effective plan (Jaffee et al., 2018). Several critical tasks must be completed to ensure that the food produced is competitive in the market segment. Equipment and technology will be used to help achieve the goal of creating appealing salmon pastries on a wider scale. The technology will be able to design a safe and efficient method of processing food. If a product has a unique selling proposition that differentiates it from the competition, the potential market reach will be limitless. The product’s competitiveness will be heavily reliant on its features and how customers react to those features. Thus, salmon pastries will be a unique product, which will gain competitiveness through their unique appeal to seafood, but it will not be contained to a specific market segment due to pastry format popularity.
Marketing Plan
A marketing plan for a new product is essential for the success of the idea and the company. The concept test will be centered around Salmon en croute, which will be prepared from the high-quality salmon fillet, puff pastry, olive oil, and white rice. Creating the proposed food product will actively participate in its safety, quality, and hygienic compliance evaluations. Maintaining a high rate of microbiological cleanliness and accuracy will be achieved by ensuring that the whole laboratory process where food processing occurs has solid microbiological procedures in place (Kim et al., 2018). An extensive final consumer study shows that the process must consider the customer’s cultural values, ethical issues, social lifestyles, and specific responsibilities, such as nutrition content, health claims, and codes of standardization (Koyande et al., 2019). Hygiene in the workplace will assist in creating a more secure atmosphere. If the food preparation environment has a high concentration of normal flora, there is a risk that gross contamination of the food occurs. It is the foundation for ensuring that the environment is free of microorganisms to produce hygienic food.
The competitor analysis shows that the main rivals are large Salmon Pastry companies, such as White Salmon Baking, and small to medium-sized businesses operating in the pastry market. The food product is called Coho Salmon Cake, and the category is Pastries. The product will be a high-quality Coho salmon cooked in a fluffy puff pastry. The composition of the product will contain regular en croute ingredients with a Coho salmon meat, but the taste will be unique due to a specific preparation process of making the pastry as puff as possible. The nutritional qualities are the strength of the product since Coho salmon is healthy due to high omega-3-fatty acids and protein content. The technical specifications of Coho Salmon Cake will be automated salmon cutting, en croute baking, and insertion of the fish meat in the baked outer layer. The manufacturing process will be based solely on food processing equipment Pollaksala, whereas the packaging will be done by the machines from Tetra Pak machines. The shelf life of the product will be five days in a room temperature, which is why the product needs to be refrigerated to extend its shelf life to 14 days.
The product’s innovative aspects will include health factors, manufacturing of the pastry baking process, and unique taste offered in a market with no such alternatives. Marketing and sales need strategic planning and setting goals to guarantee that the freshly generated product achieves the predicted vision when it is scaled up. Marketing relies on the product’s components, taste, color, and texture, among other things, to set it apart from the competition (Hameed, Xie, and Ying, 2018). Thus, the business plan will be focused on creating the product in accordance with hazard analysis and critical control points or HACCP principles to have the pastry certified. The latter aids in the safe selection, preparation, and product processing under development (Kumar, Mukherjee, and Dutta, 2020). The potential market is comprised of individuals with a higher degree of health awareness, individuals with an interest in seafood, and individuals with interest in pastry products. However, many people in the target are unaware of such an option, which is why aggressive marketing is required. The marketing mix precisely targets the mentioned groups as well as youth. Consistency is based on a constant bombardment through online and TV ads.
Analysis of food qualities allows for sorting and mixing after the processing process is finished. The product’s physical, chemical, and sensory features make up these functional characteristics. Expertise and understanding of the sorts of food under development and the cultural and sociological characteristics of the customers who either accept or reject it and it is required in the laboratory for these procedures to work. A market survey is critical in ensuring that these elements are considered at this stage of product development.
Technical Study: Development Process of Salmon Pastries
The critical consideration of the formulation and manufacturing process will be significant in the technical study. The formulation reveals that in order to manufacture Coho Salmon Cake effectively inside the laboratory’s facilities, the product must fulfill the requirements of the national standardization process and HACCP. Additionally, the product should be prepared, processed, blended, and packaged by proper sanitary standards, safety measures, and laboratory processes. The manufacturing diagram can be accessed in Figure 1 below. The composition is flour, salt, sugar, olive oil, white rice, butter, and Coho salmon.
In the case of shelf life and sensory analysis, it is the job of a technologist to pick the appropriate laboratory equipment for the manufacturing process. A standardization mark is required for the quality of these instruments, and their calibration must match up with universal units of measurement. New food production raises a slew of environmental concerns, which must be considered. The environment must meet rigorous standards of cleanliness to avoid the entrance of germs during the processing step (He et al., 2019). For the other technologist, a risk- and the hazard-free atmosphere is also a must to ensure their safety.
Before a product is released, essential procedures of packaging include using technology in the direct form. These methods must be free of contamination to generate hygienically safe food from raw ingredients to packing. The preservation of food qualities, such as texture, value, color, and flavor, is the most critical consideration during preparation (Yousefi et al., 2019). Color-coding denotes flavors and components to make the product more attractive and user-friendly (Ndraha et al., 2018). Before the product is released to the public, the technologist plays an essential part in selecting these qualities by doing extensive market research. When selecting packing materials, look for features like heat resistance and resistance to superficial damage before reaching the market (Granato et al., 2020). Additionally, the material should be lightweight, portable, and devoid of breakage.
For the nutritional value and health, the metrics adhere to the Coho salmon specificities as shown in Figures 2 and 3 below. The most important elements in 100 grams of the product are 16.4 g of protein, 21.6 grams of carbohydrates, 14.2 grams of fat, vitamins B12 and B6, and omega-3-fatty acids (He et al., 2019). The justification is that omega-3-fatty acids and protein source combination enables a greater attraction among health-conscious consumers (Paudyal et al., 2018). Coho Salmon Cake is a product that is still under development, which is why the market’s demands for the technical aspects must be assessed (Monteiro et al., 2019). Another motivating factor is the desire to present the product in a fresh light to consumers.
Regulatory Study
The people entrusted with completing the procedure follow the design they have agreed upon throughout the development phase in accordance with the regulatory norms of the national and HACCP standards. The regulations on a product level dictate that the components and raw materials undergo a safer processing technique from preparation to the packaging at this step of the production. The raw materials are subjected to testing to guarantee secure and free of harmful compounds and dangers (BeMiller, 2018). As a first step toward a finished product, standards and quality assessments are set up here. In this situation, a food laboratory must meet the fundamental need for development. The product name is compliant with the rules since it does not infringe any form of intellectual property or violate the national boundaries, and it reflects the product itself.
Sustainable Development Aspects
Sustainable development is the most crucial consideration when developing a new food product. An essential factor in selecting products’ components and other additions is the current market trend and customer demand. At a manufacturing process level, one must use this knowledge to ensure that the product does not fail when introduced to the market by designing the proper one based on consumer desire, taste, and selection (Reynolds et al., 2019). Market research suggests that most individuals choose ready-to-eat meals, regardless of age. In most cases, however, the market is unpredictable and volatile.
At a packaging level, the core marketing elements need to be incorporated alongside the HACCP certification. An improperly preserved food item decays quicker than an appropriately stored one, and the goal is to prevent food poisoning and spoilage from occurring during transport or storage before it is sold (Patel, Nicholson, and Marangoni, 2020). The trend is most saturated in major cities, making it difficult for new entrants to break through (Wani and Kumar, 2018). Thus, it should be noted that a unique approach to package designing is essential to promote a convenient use of the product as well as draw attention to it on shelves.
At a distribution level, the retail shops are the primary channels of delivering the product to consumers. Most customers are interested in the product if it meets their expectations of flavor, texture, substance, and price (Granato et al., 2018). It is feasible to anticipate the product’s success following its launch. People’s eating habits have evolved, as many now choose to switch to a new product with improved functionality (Yildirim et al., 2018). This creates a level playing field for new entrants looking to get a part of the market by offering something different.
At a company management level, the strategic appeal needs to be made in favor of entering health-oriented markets. In other words, the emphasis is put on expanding the existing small market due to low awareness of the consumer base. The manufacturing facility itself is not large since there is no significant demand, but the management needs to be directed at readiness to increase the scale of production.
Financial Study
It is rather difficult to determine the three-year projection for the product. The first year is expected to be unprofitable due to heavy investment in the equipment and low awareness of the product. The second year is likely to bring new consumers into the customer base due to extensive marketing strategies. The third year is projected to be the turning point from unprofitability to profitability.
In the case of business plan consistency, the range of customers’ tastes and preferences determines the course of action, which implies adherence to flexibility. In order to preserve the quality of the product from the factory to the retail store, these aspects are required. Finally, the packing material one chooses should be based on the customers’ demand. As a result of this decision, there is a wide range of options for packaging. Customers are able to choose from several options. Plastics, metals, and glass are used in the manufacturing process.
Initiation costs may be high due to the incorporation of many manufacturing lines, but it helps build bridges with individuals from various walks of life in the long run. In addition to cultural and social impacts, the pricing of a product is a crucial ingredient in this process. The existence of distinct manufacturing lines determines the product’s value. Many factors, such as the sort of product created, its content, or the intended audience, are considered while making this determination.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the food product analysis was conducted on Coho Salmon Cake, which belongs to a category of pastries. The market demand for the product is low due to decreased awareness among consumers. The appeal of the food product can be observed in several small markets. The marketing process will be a critical catalyst for an increase in sales, but the manufacturing process will require flexibility to be responsive to demand changes.
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