Unpad’s Premium Strawberries Appeal to Japanese Bakery and Cake Company
Jatinangor, West Java – Employing high quality food sources is one of the keys to food production for producers. Not only the freshness of the ingredients, quality food sources also contribute to the taste and nutritional content of the food or beverage produced.
One of the bread and cake companies from Japan, Chateraise visited Universitas Padjadjaran on August 12-13, 2024. The visit was held at Bale Tatanen Greenhouse Unpad Jatinangor Campus. This activity is intended as a form of partnership between Chateraise Co., Ltd. and Bale Tatanen Unpad.
The collaboration between the Japanese bread and pastry company is conducted by the usage of strawberries harvested by Unpad in the food products they produce. Bale Tatanen Unpad has continuously been cultivating premium strawberries since 2023 as a result of collaboration with Japan Premium Vegetable (JPV) and Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS).
Representative of PT Chateraise Gobel Indonesia, Nobu Hirai expressed his company’s interest in strawberries cultivated by Universitas Padjadjaran, considering Chateraise’s need for quality strawberries. Nobu also added that Chateraise is making efforts to attract the Indonesian market.
“Our main mission is to make Indonesians fully satisfied and content with our products. Here, we not only import products, but also produce our products. Therefore, we need to obtain high quality ingredients too, which is why we think it is very important to acquire quality strawberries,” Nobu explains.
The coordinator of the Plant Factory Ichigo manager of Universitas Padjadjaran, Prof. Dr. Reginawanti Hindersah, M.P. also explained how strawberries cultivated by Bale Tatanen Unpad can attract foreign producers, such as the bread and cake company Chateraise with 1000 branches worldwide and 45 branches in Indonesia.
“Chateraise’s appeal is that the fruit is fragrant and sweet. Even the most sour piece in the cultivars grown here is somehow still sweet compared to local cultivars, so it still falls into the range of the sweetness they are looking for,” she explains.
On the other hand, she also explains that the partnership with Chateraise contributes to the collaboration that has been established between Unpad and JPV. This is considered a very commendable point, considering that Bale Tatanen is the spearhead in international interactions carried out by Unpad with businesses and private institutions in various related fields.
“I hope that in the future, this greenhouse will continue to be sustained with the support of Unpad’s Faculty of Agriculture and research support from DRPM,” expresses Prof. Regina.
In addition to representatives from PT Chateraise Gobel Indonesia, the visit to Bale Tatanen Unpad was also attended by JPV CEO, Kenji Edo along with Chateraise Procurement Strategy Office Manager, Eiji Hayashi and General Manager Purchasing Department, Ryoichi Inoue.
Writer: Maria Imanuella Dewi Sekartaji
Translator: Dhia Anaulva Putri
