Cornell Food Science

On Tuesday, I had a phone call with a woman named Marin who teaches a Senior Capstone course at Cornell called Food Science 4,000. This class matches small groups of seniors with partners in the food business who are in need of assistance with anything relating to food science. Each group has about ten students and they work with the partner throughout the spring semester. There are weekly calls between the partner and the group so that progress can be tracked and updates can be given. At the end of the semester, the students create and present a portfolio on the business that they have worked on.

I am applying to become a partner in this course for The Waffle Cookie because I think it would be a unique and beneficial experience. If selected, I would ask my group to tackle a specific set of objectives. After we get the recipe professionally redeveloped, I would have the group analyze the ingredients and run tests to determine water content. From there, I would have them look into which natural preservatives would interact in the best way with the set ingredients in order to extend the shelf life. I would also have them conduct shelf life tests. It would also be a priority to research and test different packaging techniques and materials that could alter the taste and shelf life of the cookies. In particular, I would have them test out metalized film as an option. Another aspect that would need to be researched would be sealing methods. There is further research that needs to be done to determine whether nitrogen flushing or flash freezing would be the more viable option when shipping and distributing. I hope that this opportunity works out because I think it would be an amazing mutual learning experience.