The IFT Student Association (IFTSA) is committed to engaging student members from around the world to utilize their scientific skills to serve a bigger cause. The IFTSA Developing Solutions for Developing Countries (DSDC) product development competition promotes the application of food science and technology and the development of new products and processes that are targeted at improving the quality of life for people in developing countries.
The Developing Solutions for Developing Countries competition is sponsored by Feeding Tomorrow Fund.
2023–2024 Winners
- First Place: HopEnergy, University of Costa Rica
- Second Place: TANDUM Noodle, Institut Pertanian Bogor
- Third Place: GemBoost Tempeh, Institut Pertanian Bogor
Awards
Each finalist team will receive a reimbursement for team travel and registration to IFT FIRST up to $1,800. Winners will be announced at the IFTSA Closing Ceremony. Prize amounts are as follows.
- First Place: $3,000
- Second Place: $1,500
- Third Place: $500
Eligibility
Teams for this competition should have at least one Institute of Food Technologists student member at the time of submission. All team members must be students enrolled in the fall semester of the competition year. There may be only five submissions from each institution. Complete eligibility details are included in the competition guidelines document.
2024-2025 Theme
Facing the challenges of climate change, rising pollution, and increasing environmental pressures, developing countries are compelled to adopt sustainable solutions. Create innovative food packaging material that can be produced locally within a selected developing country that addresses local economic and cultural needs, all while minimizing the carbon footprint and environmental impact.
2024-2025 Theme Criteria
- Is your food packaging designed for a developing country? Raw materials from which the product is made must be native and locally sourced to a developing country, and the packaging should be tailored to the needs of a specific developing country.
- Does your packaging reduce plastic waste and minimize environmental impact? The packaging should cause minimal long-term harm to the soil, water, or air. Participants are encouraged to explore innovative materials, such as plant-based biopolymers, that can be easily produced in developing regions.
- Does your packaging produce minimal emissions and have a low environmental cost? Participants must calculate the impact (carbon footprint, energy, water, etc) of their process of making the food packaging, considering, raw materials sourcing, manufacturing, transportation and end-of-life (Raw Material Sourcing: Assess the carbon emissions from sourcing and transporting the raw materials; Manufacturing: Evaluate energy usage, including electricity and fuel required for the production process; Transportation: Estimate the emissions involved in distributing the packaging locally or regionally; End-of-Life: minimizing emissions during degradation).
- Is the packaging material economically sustainable? The cost of production, availability of materials, and potential for scalability must be considered to ensure the packaging is economically viable.
2024–2025 Competition Submission and Deadlines
Preliminary applications for this competition close February 1, 2025
Sample Verification Letter (PDF)
Competition Chair
Lathifa Novianti, IPB University