According to the data from the World Instant Noodles Association in 2023, Indonesia ranked second on most instant noodle consumption after China. This high consumption of instant noodles generates other issues relating to not environmentally friendly plastic and styrofoam cup usage. In addition, basic ingredients for noodles made from processed wheat flour are low in nutrients, but high in calories.
Seeing this phenomenon, students from the University of Indonesia (UI), who are members of the E-Zeat Team, made a culinary innovation called Miegu, which was entered in the National Business Plan Competition organized by Diponegoro University. The E-Zeat team consisting of Habil Aulia Mufa and Izha Noer Aradha (Vocational Education Program students) and Nadia Hasina, Pharmacy UI student, carried the business idea “Miegu: Perpaduan dan Tanggung Jawab Sosial dalam Inovasi Produk Mie Cup Praktis” (Miegu: Fusion and Social Responsibility in Practical Cup Noodle Product Innovation).
Miegu offers practical innovative culinary in the form of cup noodles as a staple food that is easy to serve utilizing self-heating and edible film technology. The function of sago as an alternative source of carbohydrates and gluten-free is expected to be one of the choices for people in consuming food menus.
Other than that, the use of edible film as spice packaging, paper bowls as primary packaging, as well as fork and spoon from natural birch wood for cutleries are environmentally friendly. Utilization of sago commodities through partnerships with sago farming communities is one of the issues behind the idea of making this product.
“The E-Zeat team has gone through the Business Model Canvas screening stage to enter the top fifty, followed by the Business Proposal selection until reaching six finalist teams for the pitching session,” said Habil. The competition that has been ongoing from April to June 2024 was participated by 150 participants from various inter-island universities in Indonesia. After going through a series of screening stages, the E-Zeat Team successfully achieved third place.
Habil conveyed how his and the team’s participation in this event is a strategic step to train themselves in applying the knowledge they have learned in the form of a business idea with the cross-study program or faculty collaboration, whether it is in terms of business from Creative Business students, information technology from Records and Archives Management students, and product content from Pharmacy students.
“We hope that this business idea can be realized in real terms. I also invite other students to achieve in various fields, both academic and non-academic,” said Habil. Padang Wicaksono, S.E., Ph.D, The Director of Vocational Education Program UI, expressed his pride in the achievements of the E-Zeat team. According to him, the business idea he created is an implementation of learning in class, which is an innovative product.
“We continue to strive to enable students to think creatively and create various products or prototypes that have positive benefits for society. Fresh ideas from youths show that they are ready to dive into the professional world when they have not finished their studies and become a person who is useful for Indonesia,” said Padang.
