UNAIR NEWS – Products made by the SMART Posyandu Prafi cadres in West Papua continue to be developed, including through packaging improvements. The cadres started to try using vacuum sealer to pack their food products, with the hope that the product’s quality will be better preserved and more market-ready.
This trial is a part of the SMART Kader Posyandu Mentoring Program by Team 3 of Patriot Expedition, Ministry of Transmigration, Universitas Airlangga. Through this program, the cadres learned to use packaging tools to support local-based food enterprises.
Vacuum sealers work by removing most of the air from the packaging and then sealing the opening. Its use can help maintain the quality of several types of food when accompanied by appropriate packaging selection, production process, and proper storage. However, vacuum packaging does not sterilize food or automatically make all products safe to be stored at room temperature.
For the cadres, the packaging process served as an important part of the product’s journey to customers. Food made from local ingredients and excellent recipes also requires proper packaging to ensure the food is protected during the storage and delivery process.
The team leader, Dr Muthmainnah SKM MKes, expressed hope that this skill will be able to help the cadres to improve the product quality while boosting self confidence in running a business. The members are increasingly enthusiastic; the team consist of Sri Rahmawati SPsi MSi, Imeldawati Tambunan SKM, Anggun Anggifosari SIKom, Surma Elisa Manihuruk SKM MKes, and Widyasari Yuni Agustin ST.
“The cadres’ products have the potential to grow. Therefore, a mentoring program is needed until the packaging stage. We want these women to be able to choose appropriate packaging, use packaging tools correctly, and understand how to store the products so that the product quality will be more protected until it is delivered to the customer,” said one of the team members.
In the future development, the use of vacuum sealer needs to be tailored to the character of each product. For example, chips require adjustments so that the vacuum pressure does not easily crush them. Meanwhile, wet products and processed meat products, such as meatballs, meatballs stuffed tofu, and nuggets, require cold or frozen storage according to their product characteristics. Vacuum packaging does not replace these requirements.
Lailatul, one of the SMART Posyandu cadres, expressed her hope that packaging skills will help her group’s products appear more attractive and better prepared for sale.
“We want these food products that have already been made whole-heartedly to be delivered to the customer in a good condition. By learning how to use this tool, we now have the knowledge to improve our packaging. We hope the customer will trust us more and want to order again,” she said.
Although the purpose of this trial is to help maintain the product quality and extend shelf life, its success still needs to be evaluated. Storage duration and expiry date cannot be determined solely based on the appearance of tightly sealed packaging. Appropriate observation and testing are required before the cadres can make claims regarding shelf life to customers.
This program can be connected to the SDGs 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) through improving the cadres’ business skills and developing family incomes. Packaging improvements also aligned with SDGs 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), particularly in efforts to reduce damaged or wasted food products. These connections represent the program’s intended contribution, while its impacts need to be assessed through business development and product evaluation outcomes.
Dr Muthmainnah expressed her hope that this program can be continued with production record-keeping, labeling, determining storage methods, and marketing. Thus the cadres will have a more comprehensive knowledge to manage their business independently.
“We hope that this tool will be used regularly and be taken care of together. From simple skills such as product packaging, we want the cadres’ business to grow in a more organized manner, maintain quality, and be impactful for their families,” she said.
Through this vacuum sealer trial, Prafi SMART Posyandu cadres took a step to strengthen their business. Local products are expected to be more ready to reach customers with appropriate packaging and ever improved quality.
Author: Dr. Muthmainnah, S.KM., M.Kes.,
Editor: Khefti Al Mawalia
