On 18th May, 2016, students of HCMC University of Technology (HUTECH) have outstandingly achieved 3rd place in the contest "Young Achievers ‘safe food award" took place within the confine of the 2016 International Additives Fair and Seminar by the Vietnam Association of Food Science and technology (VAFoST) held in collaboration with UBM Asia company.
Achieving the prestigious award are 2 students from HUTECH Faculty of Biotechnology - Food - Environment (CNSH-TP-MT): Pham Thi Thu Hien and Nguyen Thanh Cong titled "Rambutan Candy" with MA. Huynh Phuong Quyen as instructor. According to the information from the organizers, the "Rambutan Candy" will be selected for display at the Food Ingredients Asia Expo held in Jakarta, Indonesia in next July, 2016.
To earn this success, the group has spent 3 months researching tirelessly to figure out the perfect de-seeding technique without breaking Rambutan fruit, in addition the team also made use of the natural antimicrobial substances found in kumquat and ginger jest to add to the production process so that products can be preserved under normal conditions for 6 months without any use of chemicals. In addition,"Rambutan Candy" is wrapped in airtight vacuum packages to avoid light, the infiltration of oxygen or water vapor to maintain the product’s quality. Appraising "Rambutan Candy", the food enterprises both locally and internationally claim that HUTECH student product have the competitive exportability with products from Thailand and other countries in the region, moreover, the product can be used as a substitute for raisins in cakes, ice cream or yogurt characterized of Vietnam.
Reportedly, "Young Achievers ‘safe food award" is an international playground with prestigious judge committee in the food industry: International Union of Food Science and Technology - IUFoST, Vietnam Association of Food Science and technology, UBM Asia Company (Thailand), Unilever Company and Uu Viet limited company. The contest provides an opportunity for students of Food Science and Technology major in universities, colleges and vocational schools in Vietnam and Cambodia to develop new food to meet the increasing food demand of ASEAN consumers. The criteria for the contest are that the product has to be made from local materials; products created must possess financial practicability and can be put into production at an industrial scale.
