Noted Fieldwork, a food testing business in Birmingham, has been named the best in the UK and is inviting Brummies to come and eat. The company won Best Viewing/Research Testing Facility at the Market Research Society’s Operations Awards in London last month, beating a shortlist of the UK’s leading research facilities.
The newest Noted Fieldwork centre opened on Kings Heath High Street on September 17. Behind the shop front sits a working kitchen with food preparation and cooking facilities, including temperature-controlled storage and testing rooms.
How the testing works
Brummies can taste, try and score everything from a new ready meal to a coffee, often months before it reaches a supermarket. On a busy day, up to 120 people come through the doors. Noted’s community of testers already numbers more than 25,000 people nationally, and the Birmingham centre is actively recruiting from across the city.
Anyone aged 18 or over living in or around Birmingham can join the Noted Fieldwork community by getting in touch with them. Sessions run at the Kings Heath centre throughout the week, typically last under an hour, and every participant is rewarded for their time.
Award recognition and community response
Noted Fieldwork Operations Director Steve Lawrence said: “This award is for the whole team, the people who recruit, host and run every session properly, and it has been earned over a lot of years.” He added: “The response from Kings Heath has been brilliant. People walk past, see the sign, and come in to ask what we do. The answer is that we would like their honest opinion on what they eat and drink, and we will reward them for it.”
Lawrence emphasised the importance of local participation: “The more of Birmingham we have on the panel, the better the answers the industry gets.” The company is looking to expand its Birmingham panel, which will help food and drink producers refine products before they hit the market.
