“The next great Australian food product won’t succeed simply because it tastes good. It will succeed because it has been designed with consumers at its center.”
That was one of the biggest lessons our team brought home after attending The University of Queensland’s Sensory & Consumer Evaluation Workshop. The three-day program explored the science behind taste, aroma, texture, consumer evaluation, flavour chemistry and sensory analysis, while demonstrating how sensory data drives product innovation and quality control.
For many people outside the food industry, sensory science simply means tasting food.
In reality, it is one of the most powerful tools available for developing successful products.
It combines consumer psychology, food chemistry, analytical science and statistics to answer one simple question:
Why do people choose one product over another?
Building local capability
Western Australia has world-class agricultural producers, outstanding ingredients and a thriving food manufacturing sector.
However, specialist sensory capability and training opportunities are still relatively limited compared with some of Australia’s larger research ecosystems.
That is why investing in our people matters.
At My PlantCo, we believe innovation doesn’t happen by accident, it happens when curious people are given the opportunity to learn from world-leading experts and bring that knowledge back to Western Australia.
Rather than simply attending the workshop, our team approached it with a clear purpose:
How can we strengthen food innovation capability here in WA?
A deliberate investment in people and partnerships
The decision to send My PlantCo’s team to Queensland was not simply about attending a workshop. It was a strategic investment in capability.
Recognising the importance of sensory science in modern food innovation, CEO Mei Yong sought to partner with The University of Queensland, one of Australia’s leading universities for food and agricultural research.
The objective was simple: connect My PlantCo’s team with world-leading expertise, equip them with practical skills and bring that knowledge back to strengthen innovation within our business and beyond.
For our My PlantCo leaders, innovation is about more than developing products.
It’s about creating opportunities for people to learn, building meaningful industry partnerships and ensuring knowledge is shared generously across the wider food manufacturing ecosystem.
More than tasting food
Across three intensive days, our Food Technologist, Cleona Alexander and Grains Innovation Specialist, Dr Prakhar Chatur, explored topics including:
- human sensory perception and consumer behaviour;
- designing meaningful sensory studies;
- flavour chemistry and aroma science;
- descriptive sensory analysis;
- sensory statistics and reporting;
- flavour compound analysis;
- sensory instrumentation;
- new product development; and
- translating consumer feedback into evidence-based product decisions.
One of the workshop’s strongest themes was that innovation is no longer driven by intuition alone.
Today’s food innovators combine technical expertise with consumer insights, ensuring products are developed not only to perform well scientifically, but to resonate with the people who will ultimately enjoy them.
As our team reflected throughout the workshop:
Innovation starts with curiosity, but successful innovation is guided by evidence.
Why this matters to My PlantCo
Everything we create begins with one question:
Will consumers genuinely love this product?
Sensory science helps us answer that question with confidence.
The knowledge gained from this workshop will directly support the development of the next generation of Real Oats products while also strengthening My PlantCo’s broader innovation capability.
As our contract manufacturing and product development services continue to grow through Turban Chopsticks, these learnings will help us support emerging food businesses with more informed, consumer-focused product development.
By investing in our own capability, we’re also investing in the businesses we partner with helping make specialist food innovation knowledge more accessible to Australian startups, manufacturers and entrepreneurs.
This offering leads to the democratisation of food innovation, making expertise that was once only available to large manufacturers more accessible to startups and growing food businesses.
The more knowledge we develop, the more value we can create, not only for our own brands, but also for the businesses we partner with.
Knowledge grows when it’s shared
One of the most rewarding parts of the experience wasn’t simply attending the workshop.
It was sharing the journey.
Throughout the week, both Cleona and Prakhar documented their learnings on LinkedIn, opening conversations about consumer behaviour, flavour chemistry, sensory evaluation and food innovation with industry colleagues across Australia.
Because that’s how stronger innovation ecosystems are built.
Knowledge shouldn’t stay inside the classroom.
It should be shared, discussed and applied.
Looking ahead
The collaboration with The University of Queensland reflects a broader commitment to ensuring My PlantCo remains connected to Australia’s leading researchers, emerging technologies and best practice in food innovation.
As My PlantCo continues its collaboration with leading food researchers and organisations such as the University of Queensland, we’re excited to put these learnings into practice across our My PlantCo innovation pipeline.
By investing in people, building partnerships and openly sharing knowledge, My PlantCo hopes to contribute not only to its own growth, but also to the continued evolution of Australia’s food manufacturing sector.
Because innovation grows fastest when knowledge is shared. And when we strengthen people, we strengthen an entire industry.
5 August 2026
