A BRUNEI Government scholarship recipient who studies in the United Kingdom made the Sultanate proud when his team won the UK leg of this year’s Ecotrophelia Award – a pan-European competition for ecologically inspired new product development.
Muhammad ‘Atiq bin Juani @ Najrien, a final year Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Food Science student at the University of Reading and his three colleagues won the gold prize and £2,000 for their product Yasai Sushi, vegetarian sushi-style rolls made with locally sourced vegetables and crunchy cauliflower rice.
A portion of eight pieces in a packet contributes two of the daily recommended five portions of fruit and/or vegetables. It is low calorie, low fat and high in vitamin C, offering a guilt-free healthy option. It is suitable for vegans, but can still be enjoyed by the average carnivore, Brunei Students Unit of the High Commission of Brunei Darussalam in the United Kingdom said in a press statement.
The contest was held from June 6-7 at Campden BRI, Gloucester, United Kingdom.
Muhammad ‘Atiq also said his team wishes to push their innovative product into Brunei and UK markets.
Muhammad ‘Atiq bin Juani @ Najrien with his colleagues
The Lagom Veg team from Nottingham Trent University secured the silver prize and £1,000 with their vegetable spaghetti snack. Lagom Veg is made from ‘mis-shaped’ vegetables, which are spiralised, dried and flavoured with chilli and lemongrass before being compacted into nests. Boiling water was to be added to produce a delicious healthy snack.
The bronze prize and £500 was awarded to the London Metropolitan team for their vegan windfall fruit jelly, which is made from ‘wonky fruit’.
Ecotrophelia UK 2017 is an EU-wide Dragons’ Den style competition that promotes innovation and creativity among students interested in a career in the food industry.
From idea generation through to the final packaged product, the teams get a hands-on experience of what it takes to bring an eco-friendly food or drink to market.
The awards were introduced by the competition’s Chief Judge and Head of Product Quality, Safety and Supplier Performance at Sainsbury’s, Alec Kyriakides, and presented by Patrick Carter of M&S at Campden BRI’s annual open day. All the winning teams will also receive a one-year membership with Institute of Food Science & Technology and a number of Elsevier food science publications.
Judges from top names in the food and drink industry including Marks and Spencer, Coca-Cola, Unilever, PepsiCo, Mondelez, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Warburtons and Food Manufacture listened to the teams pitches and tasted the products before carefully considering each entry for its industrial feasibility, taste, eco-innovation, originality, creativity and innovation, and market credibility.
Bertrand Emond, Head of Membership and Training at Campden BRI said, “Ecotrophelia has gone from strength to strength. Over 250 students from 12 different universities have entered since we brought the competition to the UK five years ago.
“We are delighted that Ecotrophelia has captured the imagination of the industry and we are very grateful for the continued support that the competition receives from the industry sponsors.
“Ecotrophelia showcases some of the brightest and best emerging food scientists and technologists in the UK. Innovation and creativity is essential for the continued success of the food industry so we hope that all the students will consider a career in the food industry when they finish their studies,” Emond said.
The University of Reading team will go on to compete against 19 other national teams from across Europe for the chance to win up to €6,000 at the Ecotrophelia European final, which will be held at Food Matters Live in London in November.
The UK heat of this Europe-wide competition was organised by UK food and drink research organisation, Campden BRI, in conjunction with the IFST, the independent qualifying body for food professionals in Europe.
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