Business students at UCL Campus, Rajagiriya came together for a day of fun, learning and camaraderie on their Open Week as they took on the arduous task of showcasing their culinary creations with an added twist at the Snack Lab.
All the products featured showcased local ingredients and tested the young entrepreneurs’ creativity and the logistical hardship that go into making a brand name in a market saturated with so many products. The event was a collaboration of academic lecturers and staff uniting to give the students a chance at entrepreneurial leadership.
Manesha Udawatte, visiting lecturer for the module, the Business Professional said, “It all started at a scamper brainstorming session where students were given local products and asked to create an innovative brand showcasing the ingredients. The project included labelling, packaging, nutritional information, legal background and a full resume on the launch.”
Under the guidance of lecturers, the students came up with unique products that were unseen in local markets which championed our rich tapestry of local flavours. The goal of the project which was outside the curriculum was to expose the youngsters to other avenues of revenue.
Shark tank
A shark tank is also on the cards for these budding young entrepreneurs, where investors will come in and take a look at their products and asses their potential and give them the assistance to take their products forward.
First on the cards was Soursop Blizz, a soursop ice cream made from fresh cream and soursop, flavours include cashew and chocolate chip. The ice cream was fresh, fruity and creamy, with the flavour of the fruit beautifully melding with the rich cream.
Its texture was creamy while the cashew added a desirable crunch to the creamy mouth feel. Usama from the Soursop Blitz team said they wanted to create an ice cream that was unseen in the market. Soursop, known for its creamy, sweet taste was the perfect ingredient for their ice cream endeavour.
Hard work and patience
Ice cream is a difficult product to make at home without an ice cream maker, so how did these youngsters come up with such a brilliant product sans the machinery advantage? Usama said it was a lot of hard work and patience which included four test runs, but success was achieved in the fifth attempt.
Having the right base is crucial for a good ice cream and some of the problems the youngsters faced where to find the right whipping cream. Other than the base, they had to get the freezing time perfected and ensure the ice cream didn’t taste too fruity. They are hopeful they have tapped into a niche market and have aspirations to expand it to other markets in and around Colombo.
While kithul treacle is abundant in Sri Lanka, and its offerings diverse, Navika of the kithul ice tea team said he was yet to see an iced tea product that infused pure kithul treacle as their only sweetener. As a fan of iced tea this was the inspiration behind this unique venture and he is confident that this is the first in the market. However’ perfecting their recipe was no mean feat; eight trial runs went into this product and is a testament of their ingenuity and hard work. The flavours include Strawberry Bliss and Lemon and Mint.
Jack of Trees is the innovative name behind a quintessential Sri Lankan fruit the ever versatile jackfruit. The team behind the Jack of Trees created jackfruit chips in two flavours, red chilli and sweet honey. Found everywhere in the island, the jackfruit is prepared in a plethora of curries but chips is indeed a rare find. Initially the students found it difficult to locate the necessary quantities of jackfruit to start off their product, the jackfruit had also to be in a certain stage of the ripening process, in-between polos and waraka which was a tricky combination.
Frying times
Some of the main challenges faced by the students were the frying times and how to preserve its freshness and crispness. A lot of research went into perfecting the recipe along with several trial runs.
Simple and wholesome ingredients such as the jackfruit , coconut oil, soy, and honey are the ingredients needed to go into the making of chips and is free from artificial colours and flavours.
Dading biding pudding
Next in the lineup of products is dading biding pudding which is a toddy infused chocolate biscuit pudding, with a unique tagline attached to it, udin yatin watin pitin dading biding pudding! This rich dessert is an indulgent treat which they hope will gain a market, as they prepare to venture it out from the UCL premises into the open market.
The inspiration for this decadent dessert came when the students tried to make chocolate with toddy, however, this initially failed product morphed into something unique in the form of a rich chocolate biscuit pudding with a hint of coconut toddy adding a local touch to this classic Sri Lankan dessert. The dading, biding pudding team spent a lot of time and effort on their product and a lot of passion went into its creation, using premium ingredients and toddy from Cargills which was found at the last moment.
While the pudding is rich and creamy, the subtle flavour of the toddy seeps in making the taste unique and rich without an overbearing alcoholic feel. When asked about their challenges, finding toddy was among their biggest concerns as there were limited stocks all round!
Last is the tangy and fruity lovilicious yoghurt with the star ingredient being the local and seasonal sour fruit lovi. Ruby red lovi is an underutilised fruit in Sri Lanka with plenty of potential and a niche market which could really use this exposure these enterprising students have created. One of their biggest challenges was finding the lovi in the off season month of January which saw the students scampering around Colombo from Pettah to Ja-ela to find the fruit.
Luckily for them, they managed to source out their core ingredient from a market in Kandy, which came all the way to Colombo via a three-hour bus journey. The lovi yoghurt in a pleasing baby pink hue and is fruity and tangy with a hint of sweetness, emphasising the tart flavour of the fruit. Lovi by all means is the star of the show, with curd, milk and sugar being the other key ingredients.
“This is a first for us and we are really happy and amazed at their level of passion and dedication to launch these products,” said Dr. Devangi Perera.
Academics at UCL hoped they could help these aspiring young entrepreneurs to take their products to the next level. “I would be really happy if at least one of these products can make it to the mainstream one day”.
There is an idea to bring in investors in the long-run to help them achieve success and plans are afoot to make this an annual event so that students from each batch could experience the joys and throes of entrepreneurship at a young age.
