When developing a food product for market, understanding consumer preferences is important. Factors such as taste, sensory qualities, packaging, product name and purchase intent can all shape how well a product is received.

CP Foods Singapore Pte Ltd wanted to better understand how consumers would respond to three ready meal products it was preparing for market.

Working with Nanyang Polytechnic’s (NYP) School of Applied Science (SAS), the company embarked on a consumer sensory study to gather structured, data-driven insights to support its product development and commercialisation decisions.

The Business Challenge

CP Foods needed a clearer understanding of how consumers would respond to its ready meal products, from their sensory experience and overall liking to packaging, product-name suitability and purchase intent.

Without these insights, it could be more difficult to determine where refinements might be needed and how the products could be positioned for consumers.

The challenge was therefore to look beyond taste alone and understand the different factors shaping consumers’ overall response to the products.

The Solution

NYP designed and conducted an integrated consumer study involving more than 100 participants to evaluate three ready meal products.

Instead of assessing different aspects of the products separately, the study brought together product-liking assessments, sensory diagnostics, consumer behaviour analysis, packaging evaluation and product-name fit within a single study.

Using standardised sensory evaluation protocols, structured questionnaires and controlled testing procedures, the NYP team gathered and analysed consumer responses to provide CP Foods with a more holistic picture of how its products were perceived.

Outcomes and Impact

The findings gave the company data-driven insights that could support decisions around product optimisation, packaging and branding, positioning and commercialisation planning.

The project also provided an authentic industry learning experience for NYP’s Diploma in Food Science & Nutrition students and exchange students from the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education. By supporting the sensory evaluation sessions, they gained hands-on experience in consumer testing and sensory research, and saw how consumer insights can be applied to real-world food product development and commercialisation.

The successful engagement also paved the way for further collaboration. CP Foods went on to work with NYP on additional sensory evaluation and shelf-life evaluation projects, broadening the partnership across different areas of food product assessment and development.

For NYP, the project strengthened SAS’s capabilities in applying sensory science and consumer research to real-world industry needs. More importantly, the continued collaboration demonstrates how an initial project can develop into a longer-term industry partnership, with NYP supporting companies across different stages of their food innovation journey.