Students to cook up innovation in new competition supported by the Young Family
A generous gift from the Young Family will drive food innovation at Purdue University over the next eight years by funding the new Plant-based Foods Product Development and Marketing Competition. This student competition, which launches this fall, will challenge participants to create high-quality plant-based food products through interdisciplinary collaboration. Students will develop innovative plant-based foods and marketing strategies centered around annually rotating themes. The 2025-2026 academic year will focus on savory appetizers.
The competition is going to be phenomenal. Purdue already has done great things in the plant-based arena—we’re just taking it a step further, making a very specific competition that students can fully engage with.” -CD Young, owner of plant-based restaurants located in Illinois, Spirit Elephant and Elephant + Vine
CD Young, owner of Spirit Elephant in Winnetka, IL, serves up a plant-based twist on the classic BLT sandwich at her restaurant. Participants will be encouraged to collaborate with others across the university, working with peers they might not encounter in classroom or lab settings. Through interdisciplinary teamwork, students can create commercially viable ideas and products they might not have thought of within their own discipline.
While the Department of Food Science is spearheading the Plant-based Foods Product Development and Marketing Competition, each team is required to include students from such complementary fields as agricultural science education and communication, agricultural economics, business and other communication-related majors across the university. Teams, led by a food science major, must consist of two to four members, with at least one being an undergraduate student.
"This competition is a great opportunity to help students become more independent thinkers, gain practical skills for future careers and learn about the plant-based diet," said Elise Whitley, competition coordinator and research assistant in the Department of Food Science.
With the global population expected to reach 10 billion by 2050, we need to look at other ways to get protein, such as plant-based foods. We’re excited to develop products that meet these demands for our growing world.” -Elise Whitley
Spirit Elephant's BLT Sandwich with avocado. 
Spirit's Elephants dish, Forbidden Summer. The competition will first require teams to submit a pitch, detailing their product concept and marketing strategy. Following pitch judging day, the top 10 finalists will advance to the next phase, where they will bring their ideas to life by developing their product. These plant-based appetizers will be evaluated by the same panel of judges — experts within the food industry and academic leaders — during the spring semester. Awards will be given for first through fifth place, along with a fan favorite prize. Winners will receive cash prizes to support their academic and professional development.
I see this competition as a great professional challenge—an opportunity to apply what I’ve learned so far in academia in a more practical way." -Fransheska Semidey, Agricultural Research and Graduate Education research assistant in the food science department
Semidey continued, "Participating in the Soy-Based Food Product Development Competition has motivated me to come back to a competition setting. When presenting and showing the judges our soybean-based snack, I learned how my team could improve. This new competition is another opportunity to grow in developing plant-based foods."
Emma Sheward, junior in the Department of Agribusiness with a food marketing minor, is eager to participate as well. “I am interested in pursuing a career in the sales and marketing side of agriculture, but I don’t know much about food science,” she said. “I am excited to join this competition because I want to learn more about food distribution and packaging. Understanding both sides will be helpful as I prepare for my future career.”
The Young Family’s connection to Purdue is personal. Bill Young, CD Young’s husband and chairman of both Spirit Elephant and Elephant + Vine, is a Purdue College of Science alumnus, and the couple’s daughter, Maggie Young, is a graduate of Purdue’s College of Liberal Arts.
“I truly loved my time on campus. I developed meaningful friendships with people from diverse backgrounds and majors, which allowed me to immerse myself in a variety of groups. Purdue’s education stands out because it taught me critical thinking and how to work through complex problems,” said Bill Young.
Purdue does a great job combining STEM with business, which is incredibly important when creating products that are innovative and commercially viable. This combined contest is a great initiative to help students get ready for the workforce, post-graduation.” -Bill Young
The competition aligns closely with Purdue’s broader mission to advance sustainable and inclusive food systems through research, education and industry collaboration, which is a vision the Young Family strongly supports.
“We are huge advocates for progressive education and making advances through universities. My parents were university professors at Iowa State University, so I am well-versed in the value of higher education and how it advances society both through research and industry-specific realms—from business to the arts and everything in between,” explained CD Young.
Student registration for the 2025-2026 Plant-based Foods Product Development and Marketing Competition is now open through November 7, 2025.
For more details and competition requirements, visit the Department of Food Science or refer to the official competition flyer.
