2025 Food Science and Technology New Product Awards
This year’s Diploma of Food Science and Technology students unveiled a vibrant mix of innovative creations across both semesters, from pickled watermelon rinds and purple sweet potato mooncakes to fermented hot sauce and an allergen free kale and pumpkin seed pesto.
The Food Science and Technology New Product Launch is a biannual showcase where students present innovative food products to industry guests and an expert judging panel. Throughout the process, they apply real-world manufacturing considerations including food safety, quality standards, packaging costs and sensory analysis. Demonstrating creativity and technical skill, the winners of the top three products receive the prestigious Best New Product Development Award.
Both 2025 product launches were judged by Halycon Proteins Business Manager Martin Eagle, who praised the students’ creativity and technical skill. “There were great projects on offer, showing true foodie passion,” he said while congratulating students and their teachers.
Addressing the Gap in Vietnamese Bánh Mì Options
In June, alumna Thi Van Doan received the Gelita Award for Excellence for her nutty, creamy, healthy and 100% plant based Vegan nut pâté, earning her a $500 prize. Panisara Tippawan and Sen Yang placed second and third respectively, each receiving William Angliss Institute Short Course and Club Chef vouchers. Panisara had developed a roasted sweet potato popsicle and Sen’s product was a purple sweet potato mooncake.
Thi chose to study the Diploma of Science and Technology as a first step to her career goal, “to become a food technologist and to introduce healthy and tasty food to the public,” driven by her belief in the impact of diet on overall wellbeing.
"A highlight of studying at William Angliss Institute is gaining practical knowledge about ensuring a product is safe for public consumption and how to scale a concept into industrial processes,” said Thi.
“The best part was applying everything we learned in our practical experiments in the lab to real-world scenarios, right through to the New Product Development project. It gave me confidence in my ability to launch a real product to market.”
Winning first prize strengthened Thi’s confidence and her passion for food science. “It was an incredibly rewarding and an exciting moment for me. After months of trials, scientific testing, analysis and gathering feedback from tasting panels, having my final product recognised made all the effort worthwhile,” she said.
Thi was inspired to create her Vegan nut pâté after noticing a clear gap in the market while working in Melbourne bánh mì shops. Although pâté is considered the soul of a traditional bánh mì, many customers ordered their sandwiches without it due to vegan, vegetarian, or religious dietary requirements. “The shops I worked in had no substitutes which met the needs of these customers, and this is common for most other bánh mì shops,” she explained.
With this Vietnamese-style sandwich continuing to rise in global popularity and plant-based demand growing, Thi set out to develop a flavourful vegan pâté that honoured the sandwich’s authenticity while offering an inclusive alternative not available elsewhere.
Celebrating New Product Development Excellence
In November, Francis Ambrosino was awarded the Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology Prize for 2025. His prize includes attendance at the 2026 AIFST Annual Conference in Melbourne and a one-year graduate membership of the AIFST.
Second prize went to Steven Bathie for his Koji rice based fermented hot sauce along with a $250 William Angliss Institute short course voucher and a one-year graduate AIFST membership. Sarah-Lee Cuppleditch placed third with her dairy based sports recovery drink receiving a $150 Club Chef voucher and a one-year graduate AIFST membership. Encouragement awards were presented to Sapphire Jeffery (nut free pesto) and Regina Lai (galangal based switchel shot beverage).
Francis’ product - Outback Smallgoods: Kangaroo salami with Australian native ingredients -was inspired by two worlds he knows well: his experience as a chef working with native herbs and spices, and his family’s salami-making traditions. As his family prepared a batch just before semester began, he wondered, “What if I replaced the traditional fennel or chilli flakes with anise myrtle or pepper berry?” This sparked the idea that grew into an award-winning creation.
“Winning first prize was a very proud moment for me,” said Francis. “It showed me that the effort of studying while working full time really paid off. This recognition is both an honour and a motivator to continue developing products.”
Francis first discovered food science through a colleague, inspiring him to enrol at William Angliss Institute and after realising the course “would open more doors for my career progression.” Drawn to product development because it would let him “keep cooking but also incorporate some aspects of science,” he was excited by the challenge of creating “a viable, shelf-stable product that can be scaled to mass production.” Now, with a deeper understanding of the industry, he adds, “Seeing the wide range of opportunities possible, it’s hard to decide on what a dream job would be.”
These twice-yearly new product launches highlight the Institute’s commitment to educational excellence and its role in developing the next generation of leaders in food science and technology. William Angliss Institute is grateful for the ongoing support of Gelita, the AIFST and Club Chef.
Kick-start or upskill your career in Food Science by studying full time or part time in 2026. Learn more now by contacting the Future Students team on +613 8595 5334 or email enquiry@angliss.edu.au.
Published 28 November 2025
