Testimony

I am passionate about food in all its forms.

Matthieu's background

My end of studies work was about the development of a cookie mix for allergic and intolerant people. A project carried out in group from A to Z: specification, formulation, sensory analysis, health and hygiene, packaging, business plan

All the work done in the framework of this master's degree is done in groups

After the master, with my colleague, we continued, during several months, the project developed during our TFE in order to investigate its potential

Then, I was hired by Wagralim, in order to set up synergies between the food processing sector and community kitchens within the framework of the green deal " Cantines Durables" launched by the Walloon Region. Wagralim is one of the 6 competitiveness clusters in Wallonia created to support economic activity through innovative projects.

In a more pragmatic way, my daily activities were divided between coordination meetings with the different structures participating in these projects (working groups on the supply of community kitchens by sector or by theme), meetings with companies in the food industry, organization of events (supply meetings), development of tools and animation of sessions to support companies in sustainable development approaches ... and finally the famous team meetings.

Since September 2022, I have developed my own activity as a micro-baker. I am also a bakery trainer and"sustainable development" coach.

Why this choice of studies?

I am passionate about food in all its forms.

I decided to enroll in this master's degree in order to concretize my professional reorientation and open my vision of "Food" expert while taking advantage of my initial scientific training and in the field of food

I wanted to make this return to my first love more objective and credible and to allow me to work in the food sector in the broadest sense. I share my 20 years of experience in the medical sector as a project manager and quality manager, in a sector that is increasingly at the heart of our societal concerns (agri-food chains, sustainable development...)

I chose the faculty of Gembloux because of its curriculum, its reputation and its proximity to my home in Perwez.

A role in the company

The Manager of Food Innovation and Design (MICA) is anessential intermediary between the different professions found in the agri-food sector (Research and Development, production, quality, marketing, etc.)

Thanks to his training, he has the necessary tools to ensure the coherence of the different actions implemented during the development of a product. This is a special position, because we regularly come up with the obvious, such as "a product is only good if it meets a consumer demand".

During my post-MICA experiences, I was able to feel the importance of having a vision in terms of the supply chain: supply, production, distribution and sales. This is all the more important to meet the increasingly critical challenges that our society is and will be facing in terms of sustainable development.

Memories of student life

My student profile is unusual. I am married, I have 3 children, a lot of activities ... and a rather contemplative character. All this to say that I didn't participate in a lot of activities that characterize so much the student life ... and which were not missing.

I found stimulating, enriching and reassuring to share this MICA master's degree with my colleagues on the benches as well as the teachers.

Matthieu participated in the elaboration of this drawing, made by Emily Claereboudt.
Together, they share their vision of the Master in Food Innovation and Conception Management.