FMIPA UI – PT NGE Agree to Collaborate on Research and Development of Steamless Palm Oil to Prevent Stunting and Malnutrition

Depok, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Indonesia (FMIPA UI) Through the Special Work Unit of the Applied Science Institute (UKK LST) agreed to cooperate in developing innovations in palm oil industry products with PT Nusantara Green Energy (NGE) through research on "Increasing the added value of Steamless Palm Oil (SPO) as a Highly Nutritious Oil Containing Natural Phytonutrients for Body Health and Prevention of Stunting and Malnutrition (Malnutrition)".

The signing ceremony of the cooperation agreement (PKS) between the two parties was carried out by the Chairperson of the UKK LST FMIPA UI Prof. Dr. Jatna Supriatna, M.Sc. and the President Director of PT NGE Ir. Sahat M. Sinaga, on Tuesday (27/9/2022) at the Sinarmas Hall, Multidisciplinary Research Laboratory Building, FMIPA UI – PT Pertamina (Persero), UI Campus, Depok.

This collaboration focuses on the exploration of raw materials, as well as the development of innovative palm oil industry products in the health and pharmaceutical sectors to maintain the natural nutritional content of palm oil.

President Director of PT NGE Ir. Sahat M. Sinaga explained that cooperation with UI is very important to do because according to him UI has a faculty with very diverse scientific disciplines, so it is considered capable of supporting research activities.

"Collaboration is very important because here it is complete with the existing Faculties. We are making history now on September 27 (2022)," said Sahat when opening the event.

On the same occasion, Prof. Bambang Permadi Soemantri Brojonegoro, President Commissioner of PT Nusantara Green Energy (NGE), expressed his desire to strengthen the role of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (FMIPA) of the University of Indonesia (UI) in the field of research that provides benefits to the community.

"Of course, today's event is very relevant to the fields in FMIPA UI, so that it becomes a driver of good basic research," he said.

This basic research, said Prof. Bambang, will later become an innovation that can be used, both from a commercial perspective by companies and for direct benefits to the community, while still carrying a mandate that can help improve the welfare of the community.

Furthermore, he said, Indonesia's ability to develop basic research if continued properly accompanied by a clear plan and roadmap, can help answer the needs of society.

"One of them is through the potential of palm oil resource management that can help the economy of the Indonesian people. It is hoped that through efforts to manage steamless palm oil, it can help reduce stunting in Indonesia as a form of report substitution that is beneficial to the lives of the community and existing farmers," he said.

Vice Rector for Academic and Student Affairs UI, Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Abdul Haris, M. Sc. emphasized that UI fully supports this collaboration. According to him, UI needs to synergize with industry in producing research and innovation that provides direct benefits to the Indonesian people.

"UI is very supportive of the innovative works carried out by UI researchers and UI also always collaborates with all groups, one of which is with industry. That is why today we are carrying out a collaboration signing of cooperation between the SPO research and development with PT NGE," said Prof. Haris.

Since 2006, Indonesia has been the world's number one producer of palm oil. In 2020, the area of ​​oil palm plantations reached 16.38 million ha. Naturally, crude palm oil from Indonesia contains phytonutrients including carotenoids (as provitamin A); tocopherol and tocotrienol (Vitamin E); phytosterol (cholesterol lowering); and others. Unfortunately, with the technology currently used, these phytonutrients are lost or damaged, starting from the processing of oil palm fruit into CPO (Crude Palm Oil), then even more lost in the refining, bleaching, and deodorizing processes of palm oil.

Stunting is one of the health issues that has received special attention from the government. In Indonesia, stunting is a health problem that is still widely found everywhere and needs to be addressed seriously. One of the causes of stunting is a lack of Vitamin A. The acceleration of stunting reduction is regulated in Presidential Regulation (Perpres) number 72 of 2021.

In an effort to increase the added value of SPO produced from SPOT (Steamless Palm Oil Technology) and IRU (Impurities Removable Unit) technology that processes palm fruit into highly nutritious cooking oil, PT NGE together with FMIPA UI will develop applications of SPO to various health and pharmaceutical fields that are much more useful compared to the achievements of CPO and RBD PO products so far.

The SPOT and IRU technology is designed with a production capacity of 10 tons/hour of TBS (Fresh Fruit Bunches), so that it is easy to place close to the oil palm plantations of oil palm farmers (Small-holders). In order for the management of oil palm plantations to be more effective and efficient, oil palm farmers are directed to be in the form of a corporation, and thus this Oil Palm Farmers Corporation will have bargaining power The SPOT and IRU technology is designed with a production capacity of 10 tons/hour of TBS (Fresh Fruit Bunches), so that it is easy to place close to the oil palm plantations of oil palm farmers (Small-holders). In order for the management of oil palm plantations to be more effective and efficient, oil palm farmers are directed to be in the form of a corporation, and thus this Oil Palm Farmers Corporation will have

Still within the framework of this collaboration, PT NGE and FMIPA UI will also conduct field research in five stages, namely identifying, characterizing and analyzing the content of SPO (Steamless Palm Oil) qualitatively and quantitatively; increasing the added value of SPO oil; application of the liquid fraction of SPO or SPOOL (Edora = Edible Oil Right Away, can be eaten directly) and its heavy fraction SPOStearin (Megavite = Media for Gaining Vital Energy) for other food applications including for cosmetics; conducting efficacy tests of products developed to improve health and cosmetics, including 3-MCPDE and GE tests.

News source : https://sci.ui.ac.id/