The results of this questionnaire show that people do not always want to ‘cheat’ and buy pre-made food items. They are obviously interested, but do not want to neglect cooking a meal the ‘old-fashioned’ way. If they were to buy a ready-made Christmas product, they would like it to be savoury, possibly to cut out the difficulties in making the Christmas dinner. However, they are aware that ready-made foods are a good idea and will obviously continue to improve in their popularity, but I got the impression that people of the older generation disagreed with the idea.
Those of a younger generation realised the practicalities of these meals, and they seemed to feel that these ready made meals should be used when short of time, and not for Christmas dinner as this would commercialise Christmas further than it already is.
We spent a lesson trailing Christmas products available at Supermarkets. WE were given a spreadsheet to record our result on. The products we tested were Stuffing, Mincemeat and a Christmas Yule Log.
In the end, we found that the Yule Log was the best Christmas product. It looked, tasted, smelled and tasted appealing, however the nutrient content was not particularly good for you. The least popular was the stuffing. It was not festive in the least, and once made it didn’t look particularly appetising. The mincemeat was generally quite nice, the packaging was of quality and it had an overall tangy, but nice taste. We then produced these star diagrams.
I chose for the final product, the Berry crumble. It is a bit different than the conventional Christmas cake or pudding, though it could be used as an alternative. It would be ideal for a desert after the Christmas Eve dinner, for it is not particularly heavy. Included I have a star diagram:
The Berry crumble was good in a number of ways. It was cheap, very easy to make and required mostly basic ingredients that most households have. The appearance turned out very nice. It was golden brown and the simple pattern I had made with the crumble topping turned out brilliantly. The berry filling combined with the topping infused nicely to make a sweet taste, with a slight tang from the filling. Because of the ingredients used, it smelt of almonds and cinnamon making it smell rich and full. Also, it serves 4-6 people therefore it will be a reasonable value. Although the nutrient content was not perfect, I felt that it was a good product and fitted the specification well.
This dish itself costed £2.50, but including the dish and packaging the retailer could sell it for £3.99 making a reasonable profit. It may seem a lot of money, but as it serves 4-6 people it is good value for money.
As discussed, I think that the Practical fitted the specification well. The overall project work, including the advertising poster and packaging was very good. The advertising poster was informative, but not too lengthy. The packaging was perfect for the dish, and it was practical also. Altogether, I feel that the project was a success.
This dish could be packaged in its own silver dish/packet to go straight in the oven. If that was covered by cling film, and vacuum packaged, it should keep for a reasonably long time. If it was then put into it’s own cardboard sleeve, it would feature all necessary information, plus a picture of the dish on the front. It would have to be of good quality to lure the customer into buying it.
This new pudding for the festive period includes the finest of fresh hand-picked fruits and berries, from all over the world. It includes the finest ingredients that are range has to offer. This dish comes with our specialist customer approval award, meaning that it is great value for your money.
This meal is best suited as a festive dessert, possibly on Christmas Eve, or even as an alternative to the conventional Christmas Pudding!
If served in a bowl, drizzled with cream the outcome will be very good.
This dish has won the supplier’s ‘Product of the Year Award’.
Contains Traces of Nuts
Suitable for Vegetarians