Market-oriented methodologies that integrate the consumer into the functional foods new product development process: Part 2 advanced approaches

A market-oriented approach to new product development (NPD) is seen as a key to success in competitive and ever-evolving consumer markets and is linked to higher profitability and success at developing new products. Being market-oriented means engaging the consumer and generating consumer insights to drive the NPD process. This chapter presents three advanced market-oriented methodologies that integrate consumer insights into the process for developing new functional foods: sensory analysis, conjoint analysis, and new technologies that can be used to support the process of generating market-oriented consumer insights. When developing new functional foods, product developers might use different combinations of the various methodologies outlined to better understand different consumer segments (e.g., the elderly or gluten-free), new categories of functional foods (e.g., meat-free alternatives, nutrition for individuals, or personalised nutrition), or sustainability as a value proposition. The chapter outlines business and marketing issues, as well as examples for each methodology.