Students of Food Technology of IPB Won the 1st and 3rd Winners of World Food Technology Innovation Competition
Another record of Achievements in the international arena was made by two teams of undergraduate students from the Food Technology of the Department of Food Science and Technology (ITP), Faculty of Agricultural Technology (Fateta), Bogor Agricultural University. The two teams won the 1st and 3rd as the International participants category of the Developing Solutions for Developing Countries (DSDC), organized by the Institute of Food Technologists Student Association (IFTSA) which is one of the chapters under the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT). The competition was organized in the IFT Annual Meeting + Food Expo in New Orleans, USA, on 21-24 June 2014. The name of the two teams were the "Floya", which was consisted of Stella Alinneshia, Afifah Zahra Agista, and Nesya Nova Febriane (as 1stwinner), and "Soymuch" which was consisted of GunawanSanjaya, Amelia Septiany, and DyahSekarAlamanda (3rd winner). The second winner was given to the "Sunnysoy" team, which was consisted of graduate students (master and doctorate) of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). Previously, IPB team were successfully to win the 2nd and 3rd in the similar competition organized by DSDC in 2013 in Chicago, USA.
Developing Solutions for Developing Countries (DSDC) is a competition held annually by IFTSA as one of the items of IFT Annual Meeting + Food Expo Program. This year's competition was the 6th of its kind. DSDC Competition is open for students of all educational levels (bachelor, master, and doctorate) from both domestic (U.S. universities) and international, and it was planned to explore concepts and ideas from students on food problems, particularly faced by developing countries. Each year the committee DSDC-IFTSA set a particular theme. The theme for this year's competition is "Develop products using low value vegetable oil industry by-products that could be commercialized for human consumption in Africa".
The Selection Process and Determination of Winners
The selection process to determine winners of DSDC-IFTSA2014 was really a long and rigorous process. The judges, whowere from universities and food industries in the United States, assessed the pre-selection proposals, the final proposals, and oral presentations of the participants. In the initial stage, a total of 49 pre-proposals from around the world were selected. Then the judges elected 6 (six) teams, 3 (three) from theUnited States as domestic contestants and 3 (three) from outside the US as international contestants. Then those six elected teams were invited to DSDC-IFTSA in New Orleans, United States, for presentation. The Floya and Soymuchteams of IPB were 2 (two) lucky international teamswhich were invited for the selection process,and the other successful team was Sunnysoyteam, of UPM, Malaysia. Accordingly, the two teams of IPB must prepare their final proposals and conduct their research projects for 3 months to develop food products, as had been proposed in their pre-proposals.
Final proposals and oral presentations were criteria to be assessed by the jury in determining the winners. The teams presented their research products in front of the judges and IFTconference attendees on 23June 2014, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, New Orleans. The judges who assessed their presentations were: (1). Rolando Flores, Ph.D., the Professor and Head of Food Science and Technology Department of University of Lincoln,Nebraska; (2). Carol J .Lowry, the Senior Food Scientist of Cargill, Inc.; (3). Nicolas Meneses, Ph.D., the Project Manager of Inactivation Technologies of Buhler AG.; (4).Tom Nack, Ph.D., the Senior Scientist of General Mills, Inc.; (5). Erika Smith, Ph.D. the Senior Principal Scientist of General Mills, Inc.; (6). Hugh Welsh, JD (General Council and the President of DSM North America; and (7). Diane Schmitt, Ph.D. as competition director.
Winners ofDSDC-IFTSA competition was announced in the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton Hotel,Riverside,New Orleans at the Closing Ceremony & Annual College Bowl Competition, on 23June 2014, which was attended by both the President of IFT and IFTSA, and about five hundred students on food technology ofthe United States. Indonesia, particularlyIPB are proud of for the achievement made by those teams as winner of international arena.
The Productsof Floyaand Soymuch
Both the products of Floyaand Soymuchare concepts offood products which weredeveloped by utilizing the edible oil industry byproductsof Africa. They are soybean dregs (soybean meal) and sunflower seeds (sunflower meal) that havepositive potentialimpact for both public health and the economy of Africa. Floyais an instant porridge, which is made of soybean and sunflower meals, lactic acid – bacteriafermentedsorghum, and dried mango ingredients. This product is good for people with Protein-Energy Malnutrition (PEM), especially for children underfive years because this product has a high protein content.
As for Soymuchteam, they developedcookiesfood products made of fermented soybean meal mould, sunflower meal, cassava flour and other ingredients. This product contains protein, carbohydrates, and dietary fibre, and is good for African over three yearsage.
The most important things for consideration of the concepts, they are potentially be acceptable in the target areas by taking into account its socio-economic, and cultural impacts, as well as raw material availability in the target area, as well as its potentialto be developed into food industry to generate employments in the target areas.
What is IFT and IFTSA
Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is a non-profit international organization for the advancement of science and food technology. This organization is the largest organization of food science which has 18,000 members worldwide in 2012. Founded in 1939, IFT was based on the vision of a small group of scientists who believed that communication among professionals involved in food science and technology was essential to the progress of these emerging disciplines. Seventy-five years later, IFT has grown both in numbers and in impact. With members from virtually every discipline related to food science and technology, and from more than 100 countries around the world, IFT has truly become a voice for those dedicated to the science of food. IFT aims to facilitate the exchange of ideas among its members by organizing discussion forums, seminars and exhibitions, as well as to encourage research in the field of food technology, including the production and distribution of food. IFT also conducts the assessment and provide recognition to a food technology courses that meet "the IFT Education Standards". IPB Food Technology Studies Program is one of the 45 (forty five) studyprogramsoffered around the world which has recognized by received the status of "approved undergraduate program" of IFT in 2010, and became the first course outside of North America that is gaining recognition. Further information on IFT and DSDC-IFTSA competition can be accessed at .(Wied).
