Andalas University Develops Functional Food Innovation from Local Commodities

Padang (ANTARA) - Andalas University (Unand) in West Sumatra is developing food innovations based on biological resources and local commodities with the potential to support public health.

“Through international research collaboration, we are developing a food innovation, namely functional pasta made from local commodities,” said Fauzan Azima, head of the research team at Unand’s Faculty of Agricultural Technology, in Padang on Wednesday.

He said the development of functional food is one of the strategies to increase the added value of local commodities, while also introducing innovations capable of delivering health benefits.

Through the research, which forms part of an international research network, Unand aims to demonstrate that Indonesian local food ingredients have great potential to be developed into functional foods with scientific value, economic worth and health benefits.

He explained that the functional pasta is developed using pumpkin flour, soya bean flour and kolang-kaling purée enriched with cassiavera and Dayak onion extracts.

“One of the strengths of this research is the use of cassiavera, a flagship commodity of West Sumatra,” he said.

Indonesia supplies more than 85 per cent of the world’s cassiavera needs, with around 80 per cent of national exports coming from West Sumatra Province.

“Until now, cassiavera has mostly been marketed as a raw material. Through this research, we are trying to increase its added value by turning it into a functional food product with the potential to support health, particularly cardiovascular health,” he said.

He added that cassiavera is combined with Dayak onion because both contain bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, flavonoids and phenolic compounds that may help maintain blood pressure and reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.

“As part of the research stages, the team has also carried out in vivo (pre-clinical) testing using animal models to evaluate the product’s potential against hypertension,” he said.