New product development within the B2B food processing industry: modelling the process on the example of a FSMP product

Abstract This paper reports on the finding of a single-case study, employed to design a new product development (NPD) process model of foods for special medical purposes (FSMPs) for infants and young children within a business-to-business (B2B) company. The research involves modelling a framework from NPD models existing in the literature, tailoring the framework to the specific case and describing the NPD process while highlighting aspects characteristic to B2B food processing industry and food industry specialized in FSMPs. Direct customer involvement emerged as a crucial factor in successful product development in B2B organizations, ensuring customer satisfaction and accelerating the NPD process. Overall, the NPD process for FSMPs was discovered to align with common practices in the food processing industry, incorporating sensory evaluation and storage tests to maintain product quality. However, considering nutritional requirements and legal regulations was found to be especially important in the development process of FSMP, in particular. The described NPD process and highlighted aspects can serve as a valuable reference for B2B companies establishing or enhancing their product development processes.