Innovative snack bar business chosen as UK entry for European entrepreneurship challenge

Posted 16 June

The Riff Snacks team at the Young Enterprise finals in Manchester - from left, Hannah Plush, Ava Kind, Cayden Ayliffe and Lucie Campbell.

An innovative business using surplus fruit to make a high-protein bar will represent the UK at a European entrepreneurship competition.

Riff Snacks, built by an interdisciplinary team of students from Harper Adams University in Shropshire, will be the UK entry for the continent’s largest entrepreneurship festival - Gen-E in Latvia.

The team behind Riff Snacks, made up of students from across Business and Food courses at Harper Adams, secured their place after winning the national Young Enterprise competition in Manchester.

Explaining about their product, first year Food Business Management student Lucie Campbell, from Peebles in the Scottish Borders, said: “It all started with a surplus of bruised bananas in our university's community fridge. This local initiative collects unsold, perfectly edible food from supermarkets and makes it free for anyone to take.

“Seeing that bananas were consistently the most wasted item, we knew we had to intervene. We wanted to turn them into something genuinely healthy—not just another banana bread!

“We set off with a simple idea: date and banana bars. But we quickly discovered that the humble banana held far more potential than we ever imagined.”

Lucie and team-mates Hannah Plush, Ava Kind and Cayden Ayliffe used the surplus fruit to formulate high-protein snack bars with a third of the daily recommend fibre in every bar. They first presented their product at the regional heats of the Young Enterprise competition in May, before progressing to the competition’s national finals in Manchester – where they emerged as overall winners.

First year Food Science and Technology Apprentice Cayden, who is from Telford and works as a New Product Development Technologist for a firm in the town, said: “I think we were all left a bit gob-smacked – it didn't quite hit me until I was already home!

“I was completely shocked but felt so grateful to see all the work that the team did come to fruition.”

Final year Food Technology and Product Development student Hannah – originally from St Albans – added: “I was stunned - I think we all were! Our jaws dropped before we registered we had won and should go up to collect our trophy.”

And Lucy said: “It didn’t really sink in for a good few days afterwards.

“I think because we had already won the Marketing Excellence award, which was one of the most important awards, we thought we wouldn’t be winning the overall title and after the silver was announced, I thought that was it.

“The judge even looked at the opposite side of the room when announcing it - so we didn’t even get a hint!”

Ava, a first-year Food Business Management student from Ironbridge, Shropshire, added: "Hearing our team announced as the UK winners was honestly surreal. We were up against some incredible teams, so when our name was called, I think all of our jaws hit the floor.

"Even on the journey back from Manchester, we couldn't stop talking about it or grinning. It was an incredibly proud moment for all of us and a real reward for the hard work, teamwork, and determination that had gone into the project. Being able to represent Harper Adams at the European Finals makes the achievement feel even more special."

Both Lucie and Hannah also describe the win as a proud moment for their mentors, Senior Lecturer in Food Business and Enterprise Zoe Harrison and Harper Business School Knowledge Exchange Lead Polly Gibb – as well as for the wider Harper Adams community.

Hannah said: “It was the first time Harper have competed, so we were really just following our guts - pun not intended! Now, we get to represent the UK and Harper in the European stage - and that is still sinking in.”

And Lucie added: “We didn’t go expecting to win anything, we just wanted to give it our best shot and do Riff justice!”

Since their win, the team have been the centre of growing attention – meeting the Chairman of the Board of the Office for Students earlier this week to explain more about their business - and also securing an invite to 10 Downing Street later this year.

Riff Snacks will be at Shrewsbury Food Festival on June 27 and at Newport Show on July 11.

Between those two events, they will also be making their way to Latvia to compete at Gen-E alongside entrepreneurs from across Europe - something which each team member is looking forward to.

Hannah said: “I'm curious and excited to see what the other teams have created - a conference hall of entrepreneurs is going to be full of new and exciting ideas. It will also be great to meet other like-minded individuals.”

Cayden added: “For me, it's the opportunity to network with other innovative and entrepreneurial young people.”

Lucie said: “Talking to people about Riff is definitely my favourite thing about trade shows, especially seeing people's honest reactions to samples.

“But I’m also really looking forward to actually looking around the other trade stands - here are so many really innovative and incredible startups competing.”

And Ava added: "I'm most looking forward to seeing the sheer variety of ideas and businesses from across Europe.

"We're used to competing against a smaller number of teams, so it will be exciting to be surrounded by so many talented young entrepreneurs all in one place.

"I think it will be a fantastic opportunity to learn from others, gain new perspectives, and bring back fresh ideas of our own.

"Most of all, I'm excited to represent Harper Adams and the UK on a European stage - and make the most of an experience that not many students get the chance to be part of."