Sweet Product Application Internship at PT Indesso Niagatama

Abstract

This internship report records the six-month of professional work experience at PT Indesso, focusing on the product innovation and development at Sweet Innovation and Application Department. A lot of projects were conducted throughout the six-month period, including creating applications for cookies, chocolate, gummy, and other product requests. The project that was detailedly explained was reformulating a chocolate-flavored cream filling by reducing cocoa powder content by 50% while maintaining the sensory properties including flavor, texture, and color comparable to the benchmark product. The reformulation process included tons of trials in flavorants, colorant, and alternative ingredients such as cocoa shell-based products to enhance texture and mouthfeel. The author's responsibilities included assisting with flavor and color formulation, preparing base products, conducting sensory evaluations, and supporting cost-reduction strategies for clients projects. Additional tasks such as determining price strategies for natural colorants and supporting sensory tests such as triangle tests were also done by the author. The internship provided hand-on experience to industry practices, enhanced knowledge in product development, and developed soft skills as teamwork, problem solving, collaboration in addressing client requirements while adapting to market current trends, such as rising raw material costs.