Food Production Management MSc

Program Overview

Food Production Management MSc

Overview

The Food Production Management MSc is an exciting and challenging course that combines the food sciences with management skills. It equips science and engineering graduates for a career in food production or technical management in the food industry. Students acquire the knowledge associated with food processing, quality assurance, and new product development. The course also develops essential management techniques, including supply chain planning and quality management.

Course Structure

• Duration: 12 months (full-time), 24 months (part-time)
• Start Date: September 2026
• UK Fees: To be confirmed
• International Fees: To be confirmed
• Entry Requirements: 2:2 undergraduate degree in a natural or applied science discipline or in an engineering discipline

Course Content

The course is divided into two parts:

• Taught Modules (120 credits): Autumn and spring semesters
• Research Project (60 credits): Summer semester

Core Modules

• Postgraduate Research Project (60 credits): Carried out on campus or as part of an industrial placement
• Factory Design and Operations for Food Production (20 credits): Year-long module covering manufacturing principles, business operations, and industry case studies
• Core Skills and Technologies of Food Manufacture (30 credits): Covers food composition, processing, analysis, and reporting skills
• Food Manufacturing Case Studies (10 credits): Problem-based learning module tackling real-life industry problems
• Quality Management and Quality Techniques for Industry (20 credits): Covers quality management, quality techniques, and statistical process control
• Supply Chain Planning and Management (20 credits): Covers supply chain concepts, forecasting, and collaboration

Optional Modules

• Food Flavour (10 credits): In-depth study of flavour generation, delivery, and analysis
• E-Business (10 credits): Strategic management issues and technology developments associated with e-business
• Managing Contemporary Operations: Fundamentals and Challenges (10 credits): Introduction to operations management, including competitive priorities and structural requirements
• Consumer Science (10 credits): Factors influencing consumer behaviour, including psychological, physiological, and extrinsic factors
• Project Management (10 credits): Fundamental concepts in project management, including definitions, classifications, and resource management

Learning and Assessment

• Learning Methods: Seminars, lectures, practical classes, tutorials, workshops, and eLearning
• Assessment Methods: Written exam, lab reports, presentation, essay, coursework, dissertation, viva voce, and poster presentation

Entry Requirements

• MSc: 2:2 undergraduate degree in a natural or applied science discipline or in an engineering discipline
• International and EU Equivalents: Accepted qualifications from around the world
• English Language Requirements: IELTS 6.5 (no less than 6.0 in any element)

Fees

• Qualification: MSc
• Home/UK: To be confirmed
• International: To be confirmed

Careers

• Careers Advice: Individual support for postgraduate students
• Job Prospects: Graduate destinations include materials technologist, specifications or systems technologist, new product development, food processing technologist, quality control or analysis technologist, sensory technologist, laboratory technologist, and retail technologist
• Placements: Opportunities for industry placements, including local food companies and international organizations

Related Courses

• Food Sciences PhD/MPhil/MRes: Research on the fundamental understanding of food structure, flavour delivery, and its perception
• Food Process Engineering MSc: Equips students with the skills, knowledge, and ability to become a professional food process engineer

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

Food Production Management MSc is an exciting and challenging course, combining the food sciences with management skills. It equips science and engineering graduates for a career in food production or technical management in the food industry. You will acquire the knowledge associated with food processing, quality assurance and new product development. It also develops essential management techniques including supply chain planning and quality management. Factory visits, case studies and guest speakers from industry will give you plenty of industry exposure throughout the year. Tackle the real-life industry problems in our problem-based learning module. The briefs from industry will be used for a new product development project. You will do the practical in our Food Processing Facility which hosts a wide range of commercial scale food production and testing equipment. There is an opportunity to complete your research project in collaboration with the food industry. Projects can be factory, laboratory or literature based. Some students will have the opportunity to complete their project at the industry partner's facilities.

Outline:

This course is divided into two parts: 120 credits of taught modules in the autumn and spring semesters 60 credits research project in the summer For a masters, a total of 180 credits is required. A diploma is awarded if you choose to take only the taught element worth 120 credits. In the autumn semester and spring semester, you will normally study 60 credits of food sciences modules and 60 credits of management modules. However, there are some optional modules to take into account your background and interests. The research project involves collaboration with the food industry, either at the University or working within a company. The project will provide an insight into the scientific principles of food production processes or the application of modern management techniques to food manufacture.

Assessment:

Modules are assessed using a variety of individual assessment types which are weighted to calculate your final mark for each module. Typically all taught modules have some coursework in addition to a final exam. You will need an average mark of 50% to pass the MSc overall. You will be given a copy of our marking criteria when you start the course and will receive regular feedback from your tutors.

Teaching:

The number of formal contact hours varies depending on the optional modules you are studying. As a guide, in the autumn and spring semesters you will typically spend around 25 hours per week in classes. You will work on your research project between June and September, either based at the University or via an industry placement. You would be supervised for 3 hours per week, on average. Teaching is provided by teaching fellows, assistant professors, associate professors and professors. Technical staff, PhD students and post-doctoral researchers provide additional support in small group and practical classes. There will be around 30 students on this course. Depending on your modules, you may study with around 50 other students.

Careers:

Initial roles our students have gone on to do include: Materials technologist Specifications or systems technologist New product development Food processing technologist Quality control or analysis technologist Sensory technologist Laboratory technologist Retail technologist Here are some examples of roles our alumni have secured in the industry within 5 years of graduation: Quality Manager, Greencore, UK Technical Manager, AB World Food Ltd Senior Scientist, Mondelēz International Senior Sensory Scientist, GlaxoSmithKline Scientific Officer and Policy Advisor, DEFRA, UK Scientist, Research and Development, Unilever, China 1% of postgraduate taught students from the School of Biosciences secured graduate level employment or further graduate level study within 15 months of graduation. The average annual salary for these graduates was £32,173

• HESA Graduate Outcomes 2019/20 data published in 2022.
The Guardian Outcomes % is derived using the Guardian University Guide methodology. The average annual salary is based on data from graduates who completed a full-time postgraduate taught degree with home fee status and are working full-time within the UK.

Other:

You will complete a three month research project, supervised by a member of academic staff. The research project involves collaboration with the food industry, either at the University or working within a company. Previous students have completed placements with local food companies, e.g. FreshCut and Sensory Dimensions as well as Nestle in China (for Chinese students).

• MSc - £11,850 (UK fees)
• MSc - £30,200 (International fees)