By: Nurul Ezzaty Mohd Azhari
Photo: Mohammad Izrul Abdul Jabar
SERDANG, May 11 – In traditional medicine, the use of Misai Kucing (Malay for “Cat’s Whiskers”) is not new, especially in treating high blood pressure, diabetes and kidney stones.
Typically, the herb, Misai Kucing, or its scientific name, Orthosiphon stamineus, is often planted as an ornamental plant because of its beauty.
However, two lecturers from the Department of Process and Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Dr. Nur ‘Aliaa Abdul Rahman and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Azhari Samsu Baharuddin, chose to produce ice cream from Misai Kucing tea.
According to Nur ‘Aliaa, the ice cream was made through 20 hours of the cold mixing process of Misai Kucing tea before it was finally produced and then processed into ice cream.
“The ice cream is also formulated with low calories as the product is made from the AppetitTM based on health. The AppetitTM Ice cream was introduced in the market in November 2020 and is a technological innovation of UPM.
“The ice cream innovation has retained the natural taste and nutrients of Misai Kucing, and we are in the process of patenting the logo and image of Misai Kucing on the ice cream container. We will start marketing the flavour of Misai Kucing in early June,” she said.
She said among the AppetitTM Ice Cream commercialised and marketed under the Appetit Village branches were Musang King, D24, durian kampung, Cempedak, Nangka madu and many more.
Meanwhile, Azhari said with UPM as one of the universities with agricultural resources that can produce herb-based products, the AppetitTM Misai Kucing could compete with other products in the market.
“So far, the response has been very interesting, and we have had the Apetit Village ice cream shop for almost two years in the market. We will strive to bring UPM’s research and development (RnD) product to external parties.
“The selection of ingredients in the ice cream is done carefully to produce healthy ice cream and has the quality of texture that is comparable to other commercial brands in the market,” he said.
For ice cream lovers, you can get the AppetitTM Ice Cream at Saujana Impian Kajang or browse the Appetit Ice Cream social media page (Facebook) and @appetot.icecream.officialhq (Instagram) for more information.
Meanwhile, Azhari said the Appetit Village has other branches in Shah Alam, Putrajaya, Malacca, Kuantan and Kelantan. - UPM
