Starfruit Yoghurt Training : A team of lecturers and students from Biotechnology Study Program, FMIPA UM trains Family Welfare Empowerment women in Dadaplangu Village, how to make starfruit yoghurt.

The Community Service Team of Universitas Negeri Malang (UM), consisting of lecturers and students from the Biotechnology Study Program, Faculty of Mathematics and Sciences, held training on making yoghurt drinks from star fruit in Dadaplangu Village, Ponggok District, Blitar Regency. This activity was carried out directly at the Dadaplangu Village Office, Monday (3/6) and was attended by Family Welfare Empowerment women from Dadaplangu Village. This activity supports SDGs 3, 7, 8, and 15.

Mrs. Rokimun as the head of Family Welfare Empowerment’s Dadaplangu Village said that this training was eagerly awaited because it gave Family Welfare Empowerment women ideas for making innovative drinks from star fruit which is very abundant and easy to find in Dadaplangu Village. Until now, star fruit in Dadaplangu Village is only consumed in the form of fresh fruit, while those that are not sold or are attacked by pests are used for animal feed so that the use of terrestrial ecosystems remains sustainable, the environment remains clean and affordable (supports SDGs no. 7 and 15).

Therefore, the Community Service Team led by Ratna Juwita Ph.D innovated by making star fruit into a yoghurt drink that is liked by all groups and can be enjoyed at any time. This innovation was carried out because star fruit contains a lot of vitamin C, apart from that it also contains vitamins A, B9 (folic acid), B3 (niacin), iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium and β-carotene which are really needed by the body. “This yoghurt 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 yoghurt drinks from star fruit extract also provides new ideas for entrepreneurship, so that it can open a job opportunity and increase economic growth, especially in Dadaplangu Village (supporting SDGs no. 8). The Family Welfare Empowerment women of Dadaplangu Village, Ponggok District, Blitar 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 yoghurt drinks from star fruit.

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 Micro Small and Medium Enterprises in Dadaplangu 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 Dadaplangu Village. “From the results of the survey that was completed by the participants, the results showed good, because they felt they had gained additional skills with new knowledge that they had never known before,” she concluded.