Today’s consumers have access to an incredible variety of food choices, and it can be more challenging than ever for products to stand out on the shelf. Yet every year, food manufacturers, grocers, and convenience store owners find new ways to grow, innovate, and better serve their customers through both improved and entirely new products.
While the market is crowded, innovative brands can consistently develop successful new market entrants by executing a strategic food product development process. In this article, we break down some practical priorities for creating successful, market-ready products that meet evolving consumer demands.
Food product development refers to any process for conceptualizing, designing, and producing a new food product. A new food product may be differentiated by one or more of its ingredients, packaging, portion, appearance, price, nutrition, quality, freshness, or marketing.
As we explore in this guide, food product development may be led by either food manufacturers (which create new products for sale to retailers) or convenience stores and supermarkets (which find new ways to fill consumers' needs using supplier-sourced food ingredients).
Bringing a new food product to market is a multi-faceted challenge. The step-by-step process outlined below is designed to address each of the following strategic priorities:
While the steps outlined below are presented in a logical order, they may overlap and are not necessarily sequential. For example, some development processes may start with market research, while others might begin with an imperative to refresh a lagging product category or enter a new market segment.
It all starts with an idea. Whether it’s a straightforward competitive differentiation strategy or a creative vision for a whole new product category, every new product must be rooted in a viable concept for attracting customers in a competitive marketplace.
Start by identifying the key motivators driving your new product development process. Are you looking to leverage a new development in food science or processing technology? To realize a creative new culinary vision? Or to showcase how your existing products are still a great fit for evolving consumer tastes?
This step is closely related to initial ideation, and in some cases, preliminary research may be helpful before finalizing the product concept. You can use market research to generate initial product concepts by illuminating consumer needs or to verify that a new product concept has a viable market. A thorough testing process is a great way to efficiently evaluate new ideas before committing further resources.
When evaluating market research, keep in mind that not every product needs to be re-invented from the ground up. A focused improvement like fresher ingredients, longer shelf life, or more sustainable packaging may be enough for consumers to see your product in a whole new light.
Market research can draw on information from sources including:
As the product’s go-to-market strategy comes into focus, the product development team will need to develop a product name, proposed packaging, and marketing and/or advertising strategies.
From flavor to mouthfeel, refining your product’s recipe is a critical step in the development process. Ingredients must be assessed for taste, texture, appearance, cost, availability, nutrition, sustainability, and regulatory compliance. Each of these factors should be considered to refine a formulation that meets consumer expectations and takes advantage of new, trending ingredients. Pay particular attention to potential consumer preferences for organic, plant-based, or ethically sourced ingredients.
Once an initial formulation has been developed, small batch production and testing can proceed to refine the final product. Product formulations should be iteratively refined to:
Once the recipe is settled, partnering with the right suppliers for ingredients, packaging, and any outsourced processing needs ensures that a reliable supply will be ready to meet customer demand. Depending on your brand priorities, you should evaluate suppliers based on not just direct cost, but also sustainability and a capacity to support continued innovation for your product moving forward (and even proactively identify new opportunities as they emerge).
This step is all about verifying your work so far, both in terms of economic viability and market readiness. Consumer testing is the best way to ensure that the priorities identified in preliminary market research are reflected in the final product. In-store testing can help assess how the product’s appearance and pricing affect performance on real shelves, with consumers choosing between real-world product alternatives.
Early product prototypes also help catch flaws in the planned manufacturing/processing approach, test different packaging and/or marketing concepts, and generate some practical knowledge for maintaining quality and consistency as the process is scaled. Shelf-life testing is another important step to validate that the product’s formulation performs as intended in real-world environments.
For food manufacturers, engineering and production professionals will play a key role in establishing a commercial-scale production process, including core concerns like equipment operation, maintenance, requisite process controls, quality control, and material handling.
For grocers and convenience stores, commercialization challenges will center on selecting suppliers capable of supporting future demand growth and identifying in-store storage, presentation, and promotional needs — how will the new product be highlighted and displayed on the shelf?
Finalizing your packaging and labeling strategy is another important component of final commercialization. In addition to regulatory labeling requirements, innovative packaging design has an important role in promoting shelf appeal and showing off the quality of final ingredients. The right packaging is also critical for preserving shelf-life while providing customers with helpful features like microwaveability, self-sealing lids, and tamper-proof designs. Finally, sustainable packaging made from materials like rPET offers a proven option for reducing the environmental impact of food products.
At Lacerta, we offer comprehensive custom plastic packaging development, partnering with clients from initial concept to final production. Our in-house capabilities include concept drawings, rapid prototyping, and advanced thermoforming, allowing us to deliver high-quality, sustainable packaging that can be tailored to customers’ needs for packaging aligned with the latest design trends.
We provide innovative, cost-effective, and sustainable packaging options ready to boost product appeal and help your product meet evolving consumer demands. Whether you’re launching a new product or reimagining an existing one, Lacerta offers the right custom plastic packaging expertise to support your innovation journey.