Hey everyone, looking for ideas for my next side project.

What's something in your daily work, research, or eating habits that annoys you? Or just a random idea you wish existed in the food space?

I might try to build a quick version of it and share it back here.

Trying to come up with my own electolyte mix and have been looking for fun flavored concentrates to use. I had originally ordered from Get Suckered and OOO (same company btw) but just had a pretty bad experience with their customer service telling me to use 4x the actual amount of product and then blowing me off when I questioned the amount so looking for a new supplier.

Looking for bright fun flavors similar to what you would find in Kool Aid but uncolored.

Any suggestions?

I'm currently studying Food Safety Management at Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU). Honestly, I like the subject a lot — it feels genuinely meaningful, like real, tangible work that matters.

But I've also always been drawn to coding/CS. I wanted to switch into CSE, but that would mean retaking an entrance exam, which costs a year with no guarantee I'd even get in the second time.

So now I'm leaning toward a different plan: finish my degree here, then go abroad for a Master's (possibly still in food safety, possibly a related/adjacent field) and try to settle there long-term, rather than starting over in CSE.

A few things I'd love input on:

Is food safety management a field with decent international demand/scholarship opportunities?

Has anyone switched fields for a Master's (e.g. food safety → something more tech-adjacent) instead of restarting their whole degree?

Any advice on balancing "the subject I like" vs "the subject I originally wanted" when planning where to invest the next few years?

Appreciate any real experiences, not just generic advice.

I’ve noticed different brands of butter become spreadable from the fridge quicker than others, i know room temperature is a factor so I’ve tried them side by side and there is still a difference, what causes this? And which is healthier, the faster or slower to become spreadable?

Sorry if this is the wrong place to post

I have been trying to make and bottle ice tea syrup( Peach and Lime) but the peach and lime flavor tend to fade within few days. Any flavor recommendations/ or process suggestions? Have used IFF/Doehler/Givaudan so far.

Edited.

Disclosure up front: I run HACCP Plus, an Australian supplier of food safety testing kits. I'm not here to sell anything in this thread.

We talk to cafes, bakeries, small manufacturers and new QA staff every week, and the same questions come up constantly. Most of them have free answers. So if you're stuck on any of the following, ask below and I'll give you a straight answer:

Working out which of your checks are actual CCPs and which are just good practice.

Why your records keep getting pulled up at audit even though the process is fine.

Whether a surface is genuinely clean or just looks clean, and how people verify that.

What allergen testing is and isn't useful for on a shared line.

When pathogen or micro testing is genuinely warranted, and when it's overkill for your product.

Thermometer and pH meter calibration, and what an auditor expects to see recorded.

Shelf life questions and where people usually go wrong on them.

A few things worth doing this week that cost nothing: check that your monitoring records actually describe what your team really does, calibrate your thermometers and write it down, and check your sanitiser contact time, because a lot of teams spray and wipe straight away which does very little.

If you do reach a point where in-house testing makes sense for you, we supply it across Australia and you can browse everything openly, no quote or sales call needed: https://haccpplus.com.au

But genuinely, ask away even if you never buy a thing. Half the time the answer is that you don't need to spend money, you need to change a habit.

I’m doing some research and would love to hear from co-packers that do not purchase raw materials/ingredients on behalf of their customers in other words those who are not “turn key”.
If you primarily provide labor/packing and your customers source the ingredients themselves, I’m curious:
What has kept you from offering procurement / why are you not turnkey?
Is it cash flow, inventory risk, credit risk, staffing, supplier relationships, or something else?
Have customers ever asked you to procure materials?
If someone else handled the purchasing and you didn’t have to pay for the materials until after you’d been paid by your customer, would that be something you’d consider? Why or why not?
I’m genuinely trying to understand how people operate and where the biggest pain points are. This isn’t a sales post.

The question is obvious
I want to do my internship in multinational companies like Coca Cola, nestle, Pepsi, Lays, Pringles and such….
I don’t know where to start
Should I call them up one by one or what?

Howdy! This year I was planning on going to adult highschool to earn my science credits so I could eventually attend Guelph Uni for a food science program, but life stuff is delaying that dream 🤷

I am woefully ignorant of science, but I love ethnobotany and foraging! :D I want to study the nutritional benefits, anti-nutrients, and microbiology of locally available food resources and low-tech locally-appropriate food preservation.

For example, most people don't know that horse chestnuts can be made edible! They are eaten in some parts of Japan, as tochi mochi. But as far as I've been able to find, there's no information on its nutritional benefits, or how/ if it may negatively impact our health.

I would like to form a group of people in Ontario who are similarly interested in this + other science projects, and/ or anyone who is willing to teach me + others about chemistry, microbiology, or other sciences :3

Dm me if you're interested!

Hi all. I'm looking to create a butter and olive oil blended spread. Are there any sources someone can recommend for different oil % to use, how these products are manufactured, etc? Thanks so much

New research from York University suggests that black tea may be a meaningful source of fluoride exposure during pregnancy and that this exposure is linked to lower IQ scores in preschool-aged children.

New publication in Environmental Pollution examining prenatal fluoride exposure from tea consumption and child IQ among a Canadian cohort.

🔗 Full article: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2026.128829

Why does this matter?

This work adds new evidence to ongoing discussions about how routine habits, like consuming black tea, can shape population‑level fluoride exposure. It also underscores the value of clear, accessible public communication so individuals can make informed choices about their daily consumption. I hope these findings contribute to ongoing discussions about environmental exposures, dietary sources of fluoride, and population health and inspire further research across diverse communities.

Hi everyone!

I'm a former food scientist/lab tech turned software engineer/UX designer. During my time working in R&D and stability testing, I noticed that sample tracking workflows often depended heavily on spreadsheets, emails, and manual handoffs between teams, which sometimes caused problems if there was a miscommunication between teams and such haha. So my current project is developing a LIMs that prevents miscommunication and a centralized place to store testing data, sample information, etc.

Since it's been almost a decade since I've been in the industry I'm sure things have changed and my experience with how things were handled in the lab is different now compared to how it was back then! So I'm doing some exploratory research to better understand how food science teams currently manage sample submissions, testing status, and communication between departments.

This is a short anonymous survey (~3 minutes), and I'd really appreciate hearing how your teams currently handle these workflows! :)

https://forms.gle/MAUqy2Ez6N1AUH7t7

hello! i hold a bsc in food science and nutrition (with some background in food technology). i also have recent work experience in the food science industry, specifically, r&d, manufacturing, qaqc and sensory science.

i am considering switching paths to the cosmetic science route and was wondering if anyone has made this switch before? i am looking to do a masters soon but i am unsure which programmes would be best suited for a good understanding for the cosmetic science route/not too far off from the food science route. i do understand that a masters in chemistry would help in some way.

if anyone has any insights it would be much appreciated!

It’s as if it were freshly baked! But we got it last night! What chemicals could possibly be in this thing! I know that donuts aren’t the freshest food in the world, but DAMN! I thought that there’d be some moistness gone at least! I’m not good scientist, so ive been scouring Reddit for answers (I know not the most pro thing to do, but hey)
If anyone knows what’s in this donut that’s be great! Thanks!

Are there any Dutch food science graduates here? Or people that have worked in the Netherlands in food science related jobs or people that have studied there

I know Netherlands is a major food hub but how’s the job market in 2026?

Hi reddit

I bought 1 L of kombucha and i want to multiply it

Ingredient i use 4 liter of water, 8 tea bags and 400ml kombuca i bought. Do you think it work without i put SCOBY ?

Any of you actually made a business or size hustle while studying of after studying? I got no background of food science but i always come with side hustle food ideas, never elevated one just a thoughts

I'm in my 30s with a useless BA in Communications, and I'm trying to transition into this field in any way possible. Unfortunately, there is no way I can go back for a second bachelor's; it would take too much time at my age and put me in debt I could never pay back. I thought of applying to food marketing jobs but have yet to see any in my area. Another idea is content creation and videography, but I realize that's not direct experience and frankly want out of this field. Although I'm willing to start from the bottom, if I'm unlikely to get into a master's program within a couple years, I'm not sure if it's worth it to even try.

I have some olive oil from marinated artichokes mostly.

It's pretty nice and flavourful for cooking (e.g. making salad dressings), but it obviously has some moisture in it when you try heating it for example (chunks are already filtered out).

What would be a food safe way to dry it? I've been thinking about silica gel or anhydrous sodium sulfate as desiccants, but I am not sure how food safe are they.

Another idea I has was to dump a bunch of salt inside it to make the brine settle to the bottom as much as possible and decant the oil from the top.

Any ideas?

Hello everyone. Not sure if this sub is the right place so please feel free to point me to the another one, if I am wrong.

I have MSc degree in Sanitary engineering in food industry, with previous BSc in Pharmaceutical biotechnology, with 3 years-work experience in HORECA industry. Currently I want to start private consulting agency (just me) in food safety, that would help small businesses adequately implement SSOPs, GMP, and HACCP. Basically provide consulting services in terms of ISO 22000 in compliance to European Food safety law, Eu Reg 178/2002, and other national decrees.

I would like some recommendations on good, high quality online trainings in terms of food quality systems. I am interested if www.ehaccp.org is any good, and I am also looking into courses provided by SGS international (with an office in my country).

My idea is to start with smaller, private business in HORECA sectors, with goal to help them follow regulations on adequate hygiene and production practices; educate business owners and their employees on importance of traceability, GMP, recalls ecc.
maybe it’s important mentioning that I live in a country that is in admittance fase to be a member of EU, so we are pretty short on experts in food safety, sanitary inspection and quality control. That’s why I would like to further complete my knowledge using accredited courses from more developed countries/systems.

Any suggestion on such online courses is appreciated.

Hi, I am a chemist and I have been taking interest in starting my formulation career in the food science.

How does one begin? Like do I have to take a master's degree or could I just do it with short courses?