Master Health Food Innovation Management

Are you interested in developing new food and nutrition solutions to optimize health and prevent and treat disease? Would you like to know how a health food product goes from being just an idea to being launched in the market? And would you like to be involved in creating commercially viable foods that are both tasty and healthy? Then Health Food Innovation Management could be just the program for you.

The program focuses on the process of innovation in the food and beverage industry by integrating four key disciplines; in-depth understanding of Nutrition and Health, Consumer Sciences, Business and Enterpreneurship and Food Law in the perspective of health food innovation will be taught. You will learn how you can use your background in health and nutrition to develop new, commercially viable, healthy food products. Once you complete this master's program, you will have all the training you need to pursue a career in the food industry. Careers in consumers education, non-governmental organizations and in academic food, nutrition and health research will also be open to you. The study program is taught at the Maastricht University satellite location Campus Venlo, with visits to international trade exhibitions and site visits to relevant companies integrated in the curriculum.

Fast facts

• The only program of its kind in the world
• Combines nutrition and health with business and management, consumer sciences and food law
• Pursue a career in food product development or food research
• 2-year, full-time master’s, taught in English
• Starts in September
• 12-14 hours, 4 hours group work and 18-20 hours independent study
• Integrated academic-industrial learning program
• Extensive internship at food and beverage industry, in NL or abroad
• You’ll get an MSc in Health Food Innovation Management

Why this program?

Today, poor diet choices, often in combination with an inactive lifestyle, are known to be associated with a variety of chronic diseases, such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes. Nutritional health care has become an important driver for innovation in the food and beverage industry. In Health Food Innovation Management, you'll study the process of innovation in this sector, with a specific focus on developing healthy foods. You'll learn how to use nutritional health science to develop new products and marketing concepts.

Multidisciplinary curriculum The Master of Science in Health Food Innovation Management is a unique program, the only one of its kind in the world. The multidisciplinary curriculum is specifically tailored to the professional demands of employers in the food industry. You’ll take courses on topics such as biomedical sciences and nutrition, food regulation, consumer behavior, entrepreneurship, business and marketing. By combining elements from business and management with food innovation and health science, we’re able to provide you with an education that will give you the best possible preparation for your future career.

The program is centerd on four main topics:

• biomedical sciences, addressing the impact of nutrition components on health and disease prevention
• consumer research into the areas of health concerns, disease risks and benefit communications
• new technologies of ingredient extraction, modification and processing impacting on product application opportunities
• food regulatory/law developments, health benefit claim possibilities

Obtain a unique skillset This program will give you in-depth multidisciplinary insight into the food innovation process, with a focus on improving consumer health and preventing disease. It will provide you with a unique skillset that is specifically geared towards demands in the health food development industry. After you’ve completed the program, you’ll know how to:

Translate science into new foods In this master’s, you’ll not only learn to conduct nutrition and health-scientific research, you’ll also learn how to translate findings into smart marketing concepts based on valid health-benefit claims. By merging biomedical and consumer sciences data, you’ll be able to come up with new ideas that are both economically attractive and beneficial to the health of consumers.

Build bridges between disciplines The program is multidisciplinary, which means you’ll be able to identify relevant trends and developments on a broad range of subjects such as nutrition and health sciences, consumer sciences and food law. This will allow you to act as a facilitator between business and research departments, because you’ll be able to discuss trends in a manner that will improve cooperation between them.

Make a product a commercial success Health Food and Innovation Management has a strong focus on business and marketing. This means you’ll learn to develop a business plan that covers all relevant domains, from nutrition and health concepts, and consumer- and market studies, to financial investments and return in investments. Other business and marketing topics discussed in this program include improving efficiency, reducing failure, reducing costs and improving time to market.

Bringing the world into your classroom At Maastricht University, we have close ties to the food industry and food research institutes. We carry out research projects with them and regularly invite our connections to give lectures. You’ll have guest lectures from specialists at various European institutes as well as industry players such as Unilever, Friesland Campina and DANONE. You’ll also get to visit food fairs, the European Commission and food research institutes such as NIZO Food Research, TNO and Dutch Bakery Center NBC. This means you'll be up to date on the latest developments in this field. These resources may also be valuable to you when you are writing your thesis, or when you are trying to find a job after you graduate.

The Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences started on 1 January 2007. The faculty was the result of a merger between the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Faculty of Medicine.

Medicine

The Faculty of Medicine was the first faculty to be established at Maastricht University. The University was officially established on the 9th of January 1976, although the first medical students began their studies in September 1974. The Faculty of Medicine was the second in the world that applied the Problem-Based Learning method. The other faculties of Maastricht University , i.e. Arts and Culture, Economics and Business Administration, General Sciences, Health Sciences, Law, and Psychology adopted educational systems and research organisations akin to that of the Faculty of Medicine.

The Faculty developed into a community with a staff of around 1200 (academics, administrative and support staff), and approximately 1950 medical students. Since 1992 staff and students are based at the complex of buildings of the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Faculty of Psychology, and the University Hospital (Academisch Ziekenhuis Maastricht) which opened in 1991.

Health Sciences

The Faculty of Health Sciences offered a broad range of disciplines that made the faculty unique, not only in the Netherlands but also in Europe. The format allowed students to integrate their discipline and research work into all areas related to society, sickness and health. By way of research and specific (undergraduate and postgraduate) education, the Faculty of Health Sciences contributed to the quality improvement in healthcare.

At the moment the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences has some 2,500 students enrolled in its broad spectrum of educational programmes leading to a Bachelor's and/or Master's degree. Health Sciences examines the relationship between health, lifestyle, disease prevention, care and cure. The Health Sciences curriculum covers the entire field of health sciences: biological, behavioural and social health sciences. Three questions take centre stage throughout the course:

1) What is health? 2) Which factors influence health? 3) How can we influence these factors?

To ensure a good quality of health care not only doctors are needed, but nurses and paramedics are also important, too. But also the expertise of other professionals is essential: the health scientists.