DMI opens entries to 2024 New Product Competition
Dairy Management Inc. has announced that the 2024 competition is now open to undergraduate and graduate students in the US. The theme is Innovative, Dairy-Based Products for Health & Wellness Consumers, which means products that deliver benefits related to digestion, immunity, joint health and mobility, and general health, can be entered.
The product must follow a set of guidelines – available in full on the usdairy.com website – such as contain more than 51% of dairy ingredients by weight of the finished product; provide a good source of dairy protein; and meet food labeling and regulatory criteria. Both team and individual entries will be accepted, but the submissions must be the work of students under the supervision of a faculty adviser.
A combined $27,000 in cash prizes will be awarded, with the winner set to receive $10,000.
Phase One of the process requires entrants to submit a five-page preliminary report and cover letter, the former detailing what the product is, how it can be produced and marketed, and what functionality it provides, among other points.
A judging panel will evaluate the reports on a points-based criteria and in Phase Two, six entrants will be selected to submit a full report and their products for sampling, which the entrants will present via webinar for final judging. Phase Three will see the top three candidates attend the American Dairy Science Association Annual Meeting in West Palm Beach, FL in June 2024, where the winners will be announced.
The deadline for submitting a cover letter and preliminary report is January 15, 2024.
