When Perth-based food manufacturer Gourmania began expanding into new products and markets, they faced a familiar challenge for growing SMEs: how to build the right skills.
That's where the WA Food Industry Education Collaboration (WAFEC) program came in.
Delivered by CSIRO on behalf of the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD), the program connects businesses in the WA food and beverage sector with STEM interns to support innovation and growth.
For Gourmania, WAFEC offered a low-risk way to test new skills and strengthen their product development team.
Growth in sight for Gourmania
For many food and beverage SMEs, growth brings tough choices.
Do you stretch existing staff across increasing roles, or invest in additional specialised skills you're not sure you need long-term?
Rhys Jones, Project and Sales Manager at Gourmania, was facing this exact challenge.
Rhys wanted to trial an expansion of Gourmania's product development team in order to pursue new projects and markets.
"Coming from a previous customer base in healthcare, we had a dietician supporting the team in quality assurance (QA) and new product development (NPD)," Rhys explained.
"But we wanted to have additional internal resources dedicated to our NPD work."
With the business expanding rapidly, Rhys saw an opportunity to bring more food technology skills into the team and test how additional NPD capability could support future growth.
When stars align
With 200 hours of work offset by a $2 500 payment from DPIRD plus full support from the CSIRO team, the WAFEC program offered a practical way to explore both a new role and a potential candidate.
"It was as though the stars just aligned," Rhys said.
"We had a couple of contacts in Government and at Murdoch University who had mentioned the program, even to the point of putting forward a possible candidate."
That candidate was Hon Cheung Isaac Pun, a STEM student eager to apply his knowledge in a real-world manufacturing environment.
Building something bigger
Isaac's initial focus was on detailed compliance work and product specifications, but the real breakthrough came from collaboration with Rhys.
"Using the STEM project work Isaac was undertaking in his internship, we worked together on building and redefining our NPD process," Rhys said.
Success required upfront mentoring, as the intern transitioned from university theory to manufacturing practice, but the investment quickly paid off.
"Now I've given Isaac his own little project to work on using the process we built," Rhys said. "Isaac has the autonomy to just go ahead and take ownership of projects."
The transformation complete
After completion of the project, Isaac was offered part-time employment with Gourmania and continues to apply and expand the skills he brought during his internship with the business. The processes he helped build remain embedded across the business ensuring that compliance and product development flow efficiently through clear systems.
For Gourmania, the WAFEC internship confirmed what they had hoped: additional NPD capability would unlock growth opportunities.
With confidence in their process and people, the team is now exploring further opportunities to expand and strengthen their operations.
About WAFEC
The WAFEC program is delivered by CSIRO on behalf of the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) and connects businesses in the food and beverage sector with STEM students through paid internships. Over 200 hours, interns gain hands-on industry experience while helping businesses tackle real-world projects.
Learn more about how WAFEC can help lead you to impactful change.
When Perth-based food manufacturer Gourmania began expanding into new products and markets, they faced a familiar challenge for growing SMEs: how to build the right skills.
That's where the WA Food Industry Education Collaboration (WAFEC) program came in.
Delivered by CSIRO on behalf of the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD), the program connects businesses in the WA food and beverage sector with STEM interns to support innovation and growth.
For Gourmania, WAFEC offered a low-risk way to test new skills and strengthen their product development team.
Growth in sight for Gourmania
For many food and beverage SMEs, growth brings tough choices.
Do you stretch existing staff across increasing roles, or invest in additional specialised skills you're not sure you need long-term?
Rhys Jones, Project and Sales Manager at Gourmania, was facing this exact challenge.
Rhys wanted to trial an expansion of Gourmania's product development team in order to pursue new projects and markets.
"Coming from a previous customer base in healthcare, we had a dietician supporting the team in quality assurance (QA) and new product development (NPD)," Rhys explained.
"But we wanted to have additional internal resources dedicated to our NPD work."
With the business expanding rapidly, Rhys saw an opportunity to bring more food technology skills into the team and test how additional NPD capability could support future growth.
When stars align
With 200 hours of work offset by a $2 500 payment from DPIRD plus full support from the CSIRO team, the WAFEC program offered a practical way to explore both a new role and a potential candidate.
"It was as though the stars just aligned," Rhys said.
"We had a couple of contacts in Government and at Murdoch University who had mentioned the program, even to the point of putting forward a possible candidate."
That candidate was Hon Cheung Isaac Pun, a STEM student eager to apply his knowledge in a real-world manufacturing environment.
Building something bigger
Isaac's initial focus was on detailed compliance work and product specifications, but the real breakthrough came from collaboration with Rhys.
"Using the STEM project work Isaac was undertaking in his internship, we worked together on building and redefining our NPD process," Rhys said.
Success required upfront mentoring, as the intern transitioned from university theory to manufacturing practice, but the investment quickly paid off.
"Now I've given Isaac his own little project to work on using the process we built," Rhys said. "Isaac has the autonomy to just go ahead and take ownership of projects."
The transformation complete
After completion of the project, Isaac was offered part-time employment with Gourmania and continues to apply and expand the skills he brought during his internship with the business. The processes he helped build remain embedded across the business ensuring that compliance and product development flow efficiently through clear systems.
For Gourmania, the WAFEC internship confirmed what they had hoped: additional NPD capability would unlock growth opportunities.
With confidence in their process and people, the team is now exploring further opportunities to expand and strengthen their operations.
About WAFEC
The WAFEC program is delivered by CSIRO on behalf of the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) and connects businesses in the food and beverage sector with STEM students through paid internships. Over 200 hours, interns gain hands-on industry experience while helping businesses tackle real-world projects.
Learn more about how WAFEC can help lead you to impactful change.
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