COMMUNITY SERVICE: A team of lecturers and students from Biotechnology Study Program, FMIPA UM trains Family Welfare Empowerment women in Samar Village, how to make kefir drinks. Still from this edition, the Community Service Team of Universitas Negeri Malang, consisting of lecturers and students from the Biotechnology Study Program, Faculty of Mathematics and Sciences, held training in Samar Village, more precisely processing milk into kefir drinks. This activity took place at the Samar Village office, Monday (10/6) and was attended by Samar Village Family Welfare Empowerment women. This activity supports SDGs 3, 7, 8, and 15.
Mrs. Rubik, as the head of the Samar Village Family Welfare Empowerment, said that in this village it is very easy to find pure cow’s milk. Many women here work as milkers. Until now, cow’s milk in Samar Village is only sold in the form of fresh milk, there has never been any processing related to cow’s milk. Meanwhile, cow dung is used for biogas. The use of fresh milk and cow dung continues to be sustainable, so that the land ecosystem remains sustainable, the environment becomes clean and affordable (supports SDGs no. 7 and 15). Therefore, the Community Service Team led by Ratna Juwita Ph.D innovated by making milk into a kefir drink that is liked by all groups and can be enjoyed at any time. This innovation was carried out because Samar Village is the village with the largest milk producer in Tulungagung Regency. The nutritional content in milk such as fat, protein, carbohydrates, calcium and vitamin A is very good for health. “This kefir drink can maintain a healthy digestive system, so it is good for consumption every day, supporting SDGs no. 3”, she said.
This training activity on making kefir drinks provides new ideas for entrepreneurship, so that it can open a job opportunity and increase economic growth, especially in Samar Village (supporting SDGs no. 8). The Family Welfare Empowerment women of Samar Village, Tulungagung Regency were very enthusiastic about participating in the training and mentoring activities as seen from the various questions asked by the training participants. Each participant who attended was given a short tutorial on how to make kefir drinks, and participant representatives received a set of tools for making kefir drinks. Ratna hopes that after this training ends, Family Welfare Empowerment women can practice it themselves at home and hope that one day they can become a product of the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises in Samar Village. “We also provide our products which we have produced ourselves on a small scale to all training participants,” she said. Ratna also hopes that this training activity can improve the skills of Family Welfare Empowerment women in Samar Village. “From the results of the survey that was completed by the participants, the results showed a desire to make kefir products,” she concluded.