St. Paul, Minn. (October 29, 2007) – Crunchy, flavorful sticks, blueberry wafer rolls, and a bread made with black bean powder took the top awards during the seventh annual AACC International Student Division Product Development Competition. The competition was held during the 2007 AACC International Annual Meeting, October 7-10, 2007 in San Antonio, Texas.

Thirteen teams applied in the competition to develop a new, original food product consisting of one cereal product as the main ingredient. Each team prepared a report discussing product description, target market, and processing/packaging procedures. Out of the 13 original teams, six were selected to present their products to the judges at the AACC International annual meeting. Each finalist team created a poster describing formulation, shelf life, marketing aspects, processing, packaging, and other relevant information regarding the product. Teams delivered a 10-minute oral presentation for the judges and provided servings of the product at a tasting session.

The first place prize of $3,000 went to team “Globix” from University of Manitoba. Team members Da An, Alex A. Anton, Daiva Daugelaite, Blanca Gómez, Fernando B. Luciano, Arshala Madapathage, Heather Maskus, Lini Qiao, Nikolay Repin, Caroline F. Rosa, and Lili Zhang designed sticks made with a balanced combination of whole wheat and whole navy bean flours, resulting in nutritional properties that are high in fiber and protein, including all essential amino acids, and fat free. Globix were created in jalapeno, creamy dill, mild curry, and wasabi flavors.

The second place prize of $2,000 went to team “BlueberryCrisp” from Cornell University. Designed by team member Dongjun Zhao, BlueberryCrisp is a wafer roll product made from whole wheat flour and rice flour with real blueberry fruit filling. This product provides a good source of dietary fiber and is rich in phytochemicals and antioxidants.

The third place of $1,000 went to team “Hi-Be Bread” from Purdue University. Team members Yanyun Chen, Cynthia Machado, and Shriram Paranjpe designed a natural and innovative bread with major ingredients of black bean powder, whole wheat flour, and milled flax seeds. The bread provides a good source of fiber, and contains protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and phytonutrients.

Teams “Olla” from Rutgers, “Cran Cranberries Mini©” from Michigan State University, and “Start Right Cereal” from Texas A&M also competed in the competition. Each finalist team received a $300 travel award.

This event was made possible by sponsorships from ADM Ogilvie, Caravan Ingredients, Cargill, Inc, ConAgra Food Ingredients, David Micheal & Company, Frito-Lay, General Mills Inc., Jungbunzlauer Inc., Kellogg Co, McCormick & Company Inc., Srim Enterprises LLC, Starquest F.O.O.D. Consulting LLC, and TIC Gums. The competition was judged by Tim Christensen of Cargill, Debra Patterson of General Mills, Deirdre Ortiz and Nelson Almeida of Kellogg, Thomas Luallen from Starquest F.O.O.D. Consulting LLC, and John Mathew of Frito-Lay. Supriya Varma, Rutgers, chaired the event.

AACC International is an organization of professionals who contribute to the research, development, and processing of grains and grain-based products.