UC Davis Food Tech Club Hosts Dairy Innovation Competition

Four simple ingredients and one bold idea helped a group of students turn their low-fat dairy spread creation into a first-place win by reimagining what a schmear can be. Their product earned the top prize in a dairy innovation competition hosted by the student-run Food Tech Club at UC Davis.

The competition, now in its second year, was sponsored by Dairy Management Inc. and the California Dairy Innovation Center, a hub created by the California Milk Advisory Board to bring together researchers, dairy companies and educators to boost dairy innovation across the state. The 10-week competition featured six teams of undergraduates who were challenged to develop original fermented dairy products, taking them from idea to market-ready prototype.

The teams presented their creations last week to peers, faculty and a panel of judges made up of dairy industry professionals, including representatives from Hilmar, Straus Family Creamery and Clover Sonoma.

“To provide students this opportunity, give them an internship-level experience of creating a product and then interfacing with these companies, is really important,” said Jonah Messinger, Food Tech Club president and food science major. “I was really impressed by all the teams. I think all the products could be viable things that you might find on a store shelf one day.”

Flavorful and nutritious

Each team brought its own flavor and flair, from popsicles to probiotic pudding, the six ideas showed a range of dairy innovation. Here are the student-made items:

• 

  K-Pops: popsicles made with real fruit, kefir (a probiotic-rich fermented milk), live cultures, prebiotics and coated in chocolate. The popsicles are high in fiber and contain no artificial sweeteners. Ingredients include inulin, which encourages growth of healthy gut microbes. The popsicles come in “mango madness,” “black pink strawberry” and “raspberry velvet” flavors.

• 

  Gut Health Halo: a grab-and-go probiotic latte with fermented milk base packed with protein, fiber and antioxidants with no added sugars and active cultures to support gut microbiome health. The smooth beverage comes in two varieties: “glow getter,” designed as a morning drink with mango, turmeric and goji berries, and “calm n glow,” a nighttime drink with chamomile and vanilla.

• 

  Ming Ming: a pudding inspired by mango sticky rice. It's a gut-friendly, high protein snack or dessert that feels indulgent while staying light and nourishing. Comes in mango coconut and black tea flavors. The pudding base is made with kefir with 12 live and active probiotic cultures and includes a cold-set gelatin and whey protein with zero added sugar. It would be sold in small glass jars with an aluminum lid so it can be reused.

• 

  Happy Spoon: swap overnight oats with this flavorful alternative that contains fiber, protein and probiotics. It is made with chia seeds, farro, marine collagen, mascarpone, coconut milk, kefir and topped with fresh mango. The team highlighted this item would fit well for users of GLP-1 medications (like Ozempic), which typically follow a diet that emphasizes small, balanced meals rich in protein, fiber and whole foods.

• 

  Quipeesh: a quiche branded as a savory snack packed with live cultures, protein and fiber. It’s made with kefir, eggs, spinach, mushrooms, bell pepper, potato, cheese and flaxseed. Designed to stand out in a market dominated by sweet gut-health foods, it can be eaten cold or warmed up and is served with an herb-infused ricotta cheese topping.

• 

  Cultured: a low-fat dairy spread called “mu-schmear” with five grams of protein per serving. Made with four simple ingredients: milk, live cultures, salt and rennet (a natural enzyme used in cheese-making to thicken milk). Made with whole milk only – no added cream. The team says their product has 35% less fat than regular cream cheese.

Funding the future

Teams were vying for three prizes: seed funding of $5,000 for first place, $2,500 for second and $1,000 for third to help continue product development, testing and participating in future competitions.

First place went to Baesun Son, Katelyn Utomo, Cole McLemore and Arjun Neralla, the students behind the “Cultured” dairy spread. Neralla, a sophomore majoring in food science, said they tested different ingredient ratios and processing methods to determine what worked best.

“We were really happy when we tasted our final batch,” Neralla said. “It feels really good to get first place. A lot of hard work was put into this, a lot of late nights where we had to wake up and mix the batches; a lot of sleep was lost. But it feels really good today.”

The team behind “Happy Spoon” won second place, and “K-Pops” took home third. 

Jarett Margolis, director of business development with the California Milk Advisory Board, served as one of the judges and presented the awards, which were funded by the Board to encourage further development of innovative product concepts that utilize dairy ingredients.

“We saw some ideas that were super simple yet delivered on flavor, texture and benefits, alongside others that were highly technical and advanced; I was really impressed,” Margolis said. “Innovation is the lifeblood of nearly every industry. At the California Milk Advisory Board, it’s critical that we foster it early to drive growth in the California dairy industry and continue supporting the incredible family dairy farms across the state.”

The Food Tech Club worked alongside Professors Maria Marco and David Mills with the Department of Food Science and Technology to offer course credit for participating in the competition to give students added recognition for the time and effort invested in their projects.

“They really rose to the occasion,” Marco said. “Having seen where they started 10 weeks ago and how much work they put into it, many made their own fermented foods, that takes a lot of time, and then to add in the economic cost, the marketing, the packaging, the nutrition claims. It’s pretty impressive how they put it all together.”