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Timeout gets a preview of the new dog biscuits named in his
honor by Fresno State dietetics majors, from left Bai Vang,
Carolyn Pearce and Jenea Cox. The new student product will be
unveiled at the Gibson Farm Market March 28.
Bai Vang prepares
new Timeout Gourmet Dog Biscuits.
Carolyn Pearce puts
a tray of new Timeout Gourmet Dog Biscuits into the oven. |
Sip your award-winning Fresno
State wine, dip into some award-winning Fresno State olive oil and
barbeque your award-winning Fresno State meat.
Then throw your beloved doggie a … Timeout Gourmet Dog Biscuit – the
latest student-produced product to hit the Gibson Farm Market on campus
(Barstow and Chestnut Avenues).
Produced by three dietetics majors in the Food Science and Nutrition
Department, the new doggie treat will be formally unveiled at 3 p.m. on
Saturday, March 28, at the market.
Victor E. Bulldog, the university’s live mascot, will make an appearance
at the unveiling to take the first official bite of the new product
named for the other well-known symbol of Fresno State, Timeout.
On Friday morning, students baked and packaged the new biscuits in the
Food Processing Research Laboratory on campus.
A package of six biscuits sells for $2. Based on a pilot batch, which
sold out, this latest student product should be a smash hit.
The doggie treat was created by students Carolyn Pearce of Reedley, Bai
Vang of Madera, and Jenea Cox of Fresno as part of Dr. Dennis Ferris’
Cost Analysis in Food Systems Management class. Students practice skills
and techniques learned in this class and others – product development
and cost analysis and control, food systems management, computer
applications and purchasing – to develop unique new products to sell at
the Gibson Farm Market.
Ferris’ class of about 30 students break into teams of three to four.
They first survey the clientele at the market, then after developing a
recipe, they scale it up to meet the needs of the clientele. They are
also required to develop a business plan and keep all financial records
for the project. At the end of the exercise, they present the results in
an oral report.
Other products in the class include buttermilk honey wheat bread,
Oreo/peanut butter truffles, peanut butter cookie, Oatmeal Delight
cookies, Caramel Paw-Corn, banana bread, and chocolate zucchini muffins.
The Timeout biscuit is described as an all natural, gourmet dog biscuit
made with whole wheat flour and corn meal base, eggs (pasteurized),
small amount of brown sugar, corn oil, water flavored with cinnamon and
vanilla.
And if your dog doesn’t like it, you can always give it a shot yourself.
The use of pasteurized eggs makes the product safe for human
consumption, said Pearce.
The Pearce-Vang-Cox team decided on the Timeout Gourmet Dog Biscuit
because it wanted to develop “a new and unique product to tap into an
unaddressed market share” and generate additional foot traffic into the
Gibson Farm Market.
“Our purpose is to create a unique product to generate a new demographic
of sales in the Gibson Farm Market,” Pearce said. She said this will be
the first time the Gibson Farm Market will sell a product that is not
just for humans.
“While there are as many as 43 pet supply stores in the area there is
only one phone book listing for gourmet pet offerings,” she said. “This
is a promising statistic for sales and open-ended growth in the market.
“The pet food market has been under some threats in the recent past
because of poor quality food coming from China, causing many beloved pet
deaths,” Pearce said. “This and the climate of people becoming more
interested in buying local and knowing the sources of our own food can
only carry over into the pet food market including gourmet treats.”
All products that are marketed at the Gibson Farm Market meet or exceed
federal and state food safety and quality standards.
Proceeds from sale of this and other student-produced products helps in
supporting the teaching and research mission for the College of
Agricultural Sciences and Technology and enhances the student's learning
experience.
Also this weekend, the Gibson Farm Market will host the Fresno County
Wine Journey from 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. on Saturday, March 28, and 11 a.m. - 6
p.m. on Sunday, March 29. Participants may take the Wine Trolley to six
area wineries, including Fresno State, for tastings of wine and food.
For prices and details:
www.fresnowines.com.
For more information about the biscuits, contact Ferris at 559.278.2164
or Farm Market manager Jennifer Soberialski at 559.278.4511.
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