SERDANG, March 9 — The Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Mardi) has introduced four food innovation products with health benefits, namely mixed soup with pegaga extract, high-protein jelly pudding premixed flour, high-fibre premixed bread flour and fermented coconut water.
“All these products, which have undergone about three years of research and development (R&D), are very much sought after because they contain basic nutrients like protein, fat, carbohydrates as well as disease-prevention properties,” Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industries deputy secretary-general (Policy) Datuk Haslina Abd Hamid told a press conference after officiating the 2020 National Food Technology Seminar here today.
On the marketing methods for the products, she said there were four approaches that could be implemented, namely exclusive or non-exclusive licensing, direct selling, cooperation between Mardi and interested companies as well as appointing companies as distributors.
Meanwhile, Mardi director-general Datuk Dr Mohamad Roff Mohd Noor said the government body, which began stepping up R&D efforts related to food since the Ninth Malaysia Plan, was targeting 28 R&D for food innovation products in the next four years.
For the generator of the innovation to produce fermented coconut water, Mohd Izwan Mohd Lazim is confident the energy drink product could compete with other popular brands in the market and that talks were ongoing with several local companies.
As for the generator of the innovation to produce high-fibre tapioca bread premixed flour, Dr Aida Hamimi Ibrahim, meanwhile, said the product was especially for those with digestive problems besides helping to diversify the use of tapioca. — Bernama
