Let’s first look at what does Product Research & Development means in general then we will look at it in Food Production context:-
Research and development (R&D) refer to the investigative activities a business conducts to improve existing products and procedures or to lead to the development of new products and procedures.
Even for a food manufacturing company, food product research and development is not always an easy process. A food production company often has facilities designed only for long production runs, not the small batches needed during the testing phase of development.
The basic aim of food industry research and development (R&D) is to create new products and launch them successfully on the market. Some specific aims of strategic R&D are to: reduce costs which lower product prices; enhance sensory properties that make food more attractive; improve nutritional value to provide for dietary needs; improve food safety; add convenience, and offer greater choices of food items to consumers. These benefits come either from constant gradual product improvement or a significant product step change. The latter usually comes from new technology—crop, ingredient, process, storage—but it can also come from a new understanding of consumer needs.
Production Research
Everything starts with gathering or cultivating crops, raising or hunting fish, birds and animals. Commercial farming produces most raw food materials and is also rapidly becoming important for fish cultivation. Food production research includes the design of the final foods, the design of the raw materials to satisfy the next customer link in the food chain, and control of production to give consistent quality and food safety.