Photo caption 1: Participants in the Food Product Development Course displaying their products.
The Caribbean Centre for Research in Bioscience (UWI-CCRIB) and the Mona Academy of Science and Technology successfully delivered the Food Product Development Course, which ran from July 17, 2024 to October 17, 2025, under the IV Mexico–Jamaica Technical and Scientific Cooperation Programme. The course was offered in partnership with the Universidad Panamericana, with instruction provided by Dr. Dra. Julieta Domínguez-Soberanes (leader), Dr. Aarón González, Dra. Irery Lizbeth Melchor Durán and Mtro. Abraham Baltazar.
Twenty participants from academia and the private and public sectors benefited from the programme’s comprehensive hybrid format. The course integrated online theoretical instruction from the Mexican facilitators with practical, hands-on laboratory sessions conducted at the UWI Food Lab and coordinated by UWI-CCRIB Project Coordinator, Mr. Jordon L. Freeman (PhD candidate in Biotechnology).
The practical workshop, held from October 12–17, 2025, guided participants through key stages of product development, including concept refinement, prototype formulation, sensory evaluation, and business model planning. The week concluded with final presentations and the submission of complete project portfolios.
This collaborative initiative significantly strengthened regional capacity in applied product innovation and marked the successful completion of Phase II, paving the way for the issuance of ‘Diploma in Food Product Development’ from the Universidad Panamericana to all participants.
Photo caption 2: Participants in the UWI Food Lab as they complete the Food Product Development Course.
