Unhas Researchers Develop More Natural and Efficient Palm Sugar Products
Makassar (ANTARA) - Professor Syahidah PhD, a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Forestry, Hasanuddin University (Unhas) Makassar, has presented research findings on a more efficient method of processing palm sugar that produces more consistent quality while preserving the sugar’s natural character.
Speaking in Makassar, South Sulawesi, on Monday, Prof Syahidah said the research, which began in 2016, has produced four palm sugar product innovations and processing technologies capable of cutting production time by around 50 per cent.
She explained that whereas powdering palm sugar previously took around seven to eight hours, the technology developed by the Unhas research team can complete the process in only about three and a half to four hours.
“Palm sugar is closely tied to people’s daily lives. When we started the research in 2016, there was no information on quality standards for the palm sugar produced and circulated in South Sulawesi. Yet its potential is enormous and it is a source of income for communities in many areas,” she said.
She said the research was driven by the vast potential of palm trees in South Sulawesi, which are spread across almost all regencies.
However, at the time there were no quality benchmarks for the palm sugar produced by communities, even as demand for the product continued to rise.
In addition to cutting production time, she said, the innovation also eliminates the use of preservatives and other additives commonly used in traditional palm sugar processing, such as candlenuts, grated coconut or cooking oil.
This approach yields a more natural product with more consistent quality.
“What sets our product apart from the palm sugar already on the market is that our process does not use preservatives or other additives commonly employed by palm sugar artisans,” Prof Syahidah added.
The four innovations developed comprise liquid palm sugar, palm sugar cubes, powdered palm sugar, and sachet palm sugar. Of these four products, three have obtained distribution permits from BPOM RI, while the sachet palm sugar product is still completing its administrative process.
“For us, the distribution permit is the gateway for our research products to reach a wider market and deliver greater benefits to society,” she said.
Prof Syahidah said demand for the palm sugar products resulting from her research had in fact been coming in for some time. However, the team chose to postpone expanding marketing until all legal aspects were fulfilled.
“Market demand has actually been quite high. But we chose to hold back on expanding marketing because we wanted to make sure all requirements were met. Now that we have the distribution permit, we are increasingly confident to expand distribution and reach a wider market,” she added.
The BPOM distribution permits were handed over at the Academia, Business, Government (ABG) Collaboration Acceleration event organised by BPOM RI in cooperation with Unhas in Makassar on Saturday (11/7).