Three IPB University Students Made Achievements in the Product Development Competition in Chicago, United States
IPB University’s great appreciation is given to outstanding students who have written their best work. IPB University students from the Department of Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Agricultural Technology consisting of Brayen Ariel, Alyaa Fathi Maulida Alawi, Camilla Dewanthy Putri Basuki brought achievements in the Developing Solutions for Developing Countries (DSDC) Product Development Competition at McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois, America United States (USA).
The three students with the name of the Newbies team succeeded in getting the first place title with a proposal entitled Dragon Fruit-based Smoothies Preserved with Bacteriocin Produced by Lactobacillus plantarum as a Prospective Trend and Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) in Indonesia. The proposal describes simple natural preservatives for healthy beverage products derived from fruits and vegetables.
“In the competition there were two stages, namely the preliminary and final round. The preliminary was held online. From 40 submissions, 6 proposals were selected to advance to the final round with the final proposal having been made and presented in Chicago,” explained Brayen Ariel.
The innovation being contested by the Newbies team was techniques in preserving fruit and vegetable drinks. They brought a new idea called biopreservation. Usually fruit and vegetable juices use artificial preservatives to make them last longer. The idea of using a natural preservative from Lactobacillus plantarum is flexible and simple to use, especially in developing countries.
“At the final stage of the round, we had six opposing teams that we thought were very strong. Some came from Cornell University, Montana University, the East Java Veterans National Development University, and a university from Mexico,” said Brayen.
Brayen said the competition was very impressive for him. He learned many lessons and he felt proud to be able to make Indonesia and IPB University proud in particular.
“This competition is a very impressive long journey, but it all pays off. We learn a lot from the experiences of our previous seniors. We also didn’t expect to be the winner and be able to attract the attention of the judges with the unique and new innovations we made,” he said.
Brayen and the team hope that later there will be more innovations produced by IPB University students. They also hope that this innovation can be published and realized.
“As a team, we also want to tell you not to be afraid of participating in international competitions. Even though we meet a team that we think is better, as long as we have good preparations with all our hearts, we are sure that we can make IPB University proud,” he said. (Lp/Rz) (IAAS/SHY)
