Hong Kong Caterpillar Biscuits Bring the Students of Fapet UB Get Gold Medal

Students from the Faculty of Animal Science Universitas Brawijaya (Fapet UB) class 2019 donate gold medals after becoming the first winner in the Perbanas Entrepreneur Awards competition 2021, Saturday (20/03/2021). The competition, organized by STIE Perbanas Surabaya, emphasized the field of entrepreneurship to improve students’ abilities in entrepreneurship and create jobs.

 Under the tutelage of the supervising lecturer Dr. Dedes Amertaningtyas, S.Pt., MP, the team consisted of Sularso, Hendarto, and Yasri Rahmawati. They make biscuits from caterpillar hongkong also called mealworm (Tenebriomolito), as a solution to overcome stunting or short stature(shortness)in children. Namely, a condition of height that is not by age and describes stunted growth due to long-term malnutrition.

According to Sularso, the protein content in Hong Kong caterpillar larvae is quite high, namely 47.44%, with a fat content of 21.84%, as well as amino acids in the form of taurine by 17.53%, which is very much needed during the growth and development of children because taurine is the second most abundant amino acid in breast milk, which functions as a neurotransmitter and plays an important role in the process of brain cell maturation.

In making biscuits, first the hongkong caterpillars are washed and dried and then baked in the oven. Then mashed using a blender and filtered the water. Finally, the caterpillar juice is mixed into the dough from flour, sugar, and eggs.

Meanwhile, marketing techniques are more focused online by utilizing social media such as Line, Whatsapp, Instagram, and Facebook. In the future, a system will be added barcode in the menu for ordering so that purchases are directed at websites and marketplaces, such as Tokopedia, Shopee, and Gojek. (dta)