After previously cultivating and processing Hanjeli, Stevia, and Roselle plants in Sasakpanjang Village, West Java, Universitas Indonesia (UI) through the Faculty of Pharmacy (FF) provided product marketing education and Pendampingan Sertifikasi Produk Industri Rumah Tangga (PIRT) (Home Industry Product Certification Assistance) for Artisan Tea products. This community service activity was chaired by Dr. apt. Febrina Amelia Saputri, M.Si., and in collaboration with Shopee Indonesia.
The Dean of FFUI, Prof. Dr. apt. Arry Yanuar, M.Sc., expressed his pride in the residents of Sasakpanjang Village who always strive to consistently improve the welfare of their village and implement the education that FFUI has provided so far. “The residents here are very cooperative in following the education and training that we provided, even one step ahead of our expectations. Hopefully, our programs will truly provide benefits to improve the village economy,” said Prof. Arry.
In its implementation, a workshop was held on making PIRT derived from Stevia and Roselle plants. One of the lecturers of FFUI, apt. Roshamur Cahyan Forestrania, M.Sc., Ph.D., taught products that can be made and marketed by residents, on Saturday, August 3, at the Sasakpanjang Village Hall, Tajurhalang District, Bogor Regency, West Java.
“Biffa Tea is a herbal tea concoction made from dried plants. In addition to providing a distinctive taste from the combination of various tea flavors, this drink also contains various benefits for the body,” said apt. Roshamur.
Some product compositions can be planted by the residents of Sasakpanjang Village themselves, such as roselle and stevia which have long been cultivated by residents. Planting yourself can reduce production costs so that the profits that will be obtained later will be higher. Wrapped in attractive and easy-to-carry packaging, one Biffa Tea product itself can be sold at a range of above Rp50,000 per pack.
In addition, by collaborating with Shopee Indonesia, FFUI conducted socialization and education on how village residents can market their products on e-commerce, especially on Shopee. Shopee Indonesia Business Development, Kurnia Rahman, also delivered material related to marketing.
He said, that through e-commerce, sellers have many advantages, especially a wider reach. Residents in Sasakpanjang Village can reach buyers from outside the city and abroad. There is also the convenience and ease of transactions, fast payment process, many promotions, and can directly see reviews from buyers.
Furthermore, Kurnia also taught the residents about preparing product photos and names, product descriptions, and tutorials on opening a shop on Shopee. Residents were also taught how to make a shop competitive and continue to exist with the “POSE” concept. The concept is “P” which is showing product advantages, “O” which is optimizing the use of promotions and free shipping, “S” which is completing orders on time, and “E” which is evaluating product and shop performance every month.
“I am very happy with the arrival of the FFUI community service team today, our residents were really taught how to plant, process products, and market them. So far we have only used e-commerce for shopping, but now we are educated to sell. Hopefully, our products will be better known,” said Yustiana, a resident of Sasakpanjang Village.
Previously, FFUI has implemented a series of community service programs in Sasakpanjang Village which is a series with this newly implemented program. These programs include Edukasi dan Budidaya Tanaman Obat Keluarga (TOGA) (Education and Cultivation of Family Medicinal Plants), Edukasi Sertifikasi Halal pada Produk Pangan Hasil UMKM Warga (Education on Halal Certification of Food Products Produced by Community MSMEs), and Edukasi Bahan Kimia Berbahaya dalam Makanan dan Obat Tradisional (Education on Hazardous Chemicals in Food and Traditional Medicine).
“Today’s activity is a fairly long series where this activity has been agreed on since 2021. Everything we do here is based on the input and the wishes of the residents. We intend to facilitate these wishes, and it is proven that the residents here do have high enthusiasm and passion for the programs we provide,” said Prof. Dr. apt. Fadlina Chany Saputri, M.Si., the Deputy Dean for Education, Research, and Student Affairs FFUI.
