A team of Food and Nutritional Sciences students from the University of Reading have made it to the Ecotrophelia UK finals for the second year in a row.
Ecotrophelia challenges teams of students across the country to develop a new, eco-friendly, innovative food or drink product. The winning entry receives £3,500 and will go on to compete in the European finals in October.
The University of Reading team, made up of final year students Florence Stringer, Reece Wilkinson, Elizabeth Gray and Liwen Zheng, have developed a vegan, oat-based, vanilla yoghurt alternative, with a ‘supergrain’ cluster topping containing recycled oats, puffed quinoa and sorghum wheat; the clusters each contain cacao, cherry and almond.
They have been shortlisted, along with four other student teams, to present their idea to a panel of food experts from Marks & Spencer, Coca-Cola, Mondelez, PepsiCo, Sainsbury’s, Unilever, Warburtons, Food Manufacture and Campden BRI. The finals take place on the 5th of June, with a winner announced the following day.
Professor Richard Frazier, Head of the Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Reading said:
“Food and nutritional sciences have had a long and distinguished place here at Reading, and I’m delighted that our students are once again recognised among the most innovative in the country. Our expertise and facilities provide students with a real experience of the kind of work that happens in industry.
“We are proud that our relationships across the sector provide our students with opportunities like professional placements and participation in international student competitions that enhance their skills and experience such that more than 96% of our students are working or in further study after graduation.”
The OAT-YOG team follows the resounding success of the University of Reading’s 2017 Ecotrophelia entry. The Yasai Caulirice Sushi team scooped the top prize in the UK competition and won a silver medal for their low calorie take on sushi in the European-wide competition last year.
Click here to read more about the Yasai Caulirice Sushi team.