The teaching of Food Technology must evolve to meet the challenges of the gastronomic and food sectors, where sustainability, by-product valorization, and innovation play a key role. Traditional teaching methods often limit the practical application of acquired knowledge. Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) has proven to be an effective methodology for increasing student motivation and engagement by addressing real-world problems in academic settings. This approach promotes active participation, critical thinking, and teamwork through hands-on problem-solving. This study aims to evaluate the implementation of CBL in the subject “Applied Food Technology in Gastronomy,” part of the Gastronomy and Culinary Arts undergraduate program at the University of Alicante. The study was conducted during the 2024–2025 academic year with a sample of 55 students.

The methodology was structured in four phases:
(1) Challenge definition, focused on by-product valorization, functional ingredient development, and sustainable process optimization;
(2) Teamwork using digital tools such as Miro and Xmind to organize proposals;
(3) Solution development and documentation through Substack, facilitating dissemination and peer feedback; and
(4) Impact assessment via satisfaction surveys and analysis of digital interactions.

Results show that 85% of students found CBL helpful in applying theoretical knowledge to real-life contexts, and 78% reported improvements in teamwork and time management skills. The developed projects also revealed potential collaboration opportunities with food companies interested in the proposed solutions. Some challenges included an initial learning curve with digital tools and time management, consistent with common difficulties reported in CBL implementation in higher education. Overall, the findings confirm that CBL is an effective strategy for teaching food technology, enhancing student motivation, autonomy, and critical thinking. The interest shown by companies highlights the potential of integrating the productive sector in future editions. Incorporating Design Thinking in upcoming iterations is proposed to enrich the ideation and innovation process. These results have broader implications for higher education, demonstrating that active methodologies and digital tools can enhance technical training and better align it with market needs.

Keywords: Challenge-Based Learning, educational innovation, food technology, active methodologies, digital tools.