This is an introduction to the food industry and the product design and development process to provide students with a learning framework for later studies. It covers the categories of food markets from local through to international and an explanation of the key sectors of retail, food service and ingredient manufacture and the value chains that supply them. Learning the food product design process will encompass covering the steps for the creation of products from development of the design and specifications through to the material sourcing, manufacturing, validation and distribution facets. It will describe the role of the design brief in the design of new food products and comparison with existing products, the use of taste and consumer panels and the market research needed to construct a specification for a new food product. Learning in this unit will take place through a combination of introductory face to face lecture and on-line discussion using MyLO with individual reading. Students will undertake group assignments on a food product market with formative feedback during tutorials and summative assessments which require application of the knowledge covered in lectures.