Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have been on the rise every year. These diseases are currently a concern because most Indonesians still lack an understanding of proper food portioning.
Five UGM students developed a portioning plate integrated with a web application to address this issue. This plate is designed to help individuals manage their meal portions accurately, following the Ministry of Health recommendations.
The five UGM students who developed the portioning plate are Lia Hanifah, Annisa Usfatun Khasanah, Siti Fadilah Noviyanti (Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing), Ullen Sentalu Tjinta Laras (Faculty of Animal Science), and Ghifari Nafhan Muhammad Zhafarizza (Vocational College).
Under Yayuk Hartriyanti’s guidance, they developed the portioning plate through the UGM Student Creativity Program in Entrepreneurship (PKM-K), which received funding from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology.
“Through this development, the UGM student team hopes to improve public health as a preventive measure to tackle NCDs through healthy eating habits,” said Lia Hanifah at the UGM campus on Tuesday (Jul. 16).
As the head of the PKM-K UGM portioning plate team, Hanifah explained that the idea for the portioning plate, NutriPlate, stemmed from concerns about the increasing prevalence of NCDs each year. Indonesians are worried because most do not understand proper portioning.
“Many people still consume insufficient vegetables and fruits. Yet, a significant cause of non-communicable diseases is the failure to maintain a healthy diet,” she explained.
Hanifah added that NCDs continue to increase each year, evidenced by long queues of people seeking treatment in hospitals.
“We are very concerned when we observe that most people consume meals that do not include vegetables and fruits. This is especially true for students who often indulge in easily available, tasty food,” she said.
Furthermore, Hanifah explained that the portioning plate comes in four variations: regular plate, diabetes plate, obese plate, and athlete plate. These variations are designed to help consumers choose according to their conditions.
The portioning guidelines are based on the balanced nutrition guidelines issued by the Ministry of Health (“My Plate”), which have been further developed into various variations to accommodate consumers’ needs.
“Of course, the development of the portioning plate involved literature research and consultations with qualified dietitians at the Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing at UGM,” she clarified.
Annisa Usfatun Khasanah, a team member, added that NutriPlate also features web integration, allowing consumers to access accurate nutritional education. The web application includes educational content, BMI calculation, meal menu consultation, and a calorie estimation scanner.
“This integration offers additional benefits for consumers to gain education and improve their understanding of healthy living and proper portioning,” she explained.
Ghifari Nafhan Muhammad Zhafarizza revealed that web integration is easy to develop and access, leading the team to choose this approach. As the technology development team, he faced challenges, especially in product design.
Meanwhile, Ullen Sentalu Tjinta Laras explained that the team repeatedly sought public feedback to determine the most appropriate design to achieve a suitable design. The NutriPlate design involved a series of sample tests to align with public preferences.
“It was challenging, but we are happy to have created a design that resonates with the public,” Laras said.
NutriPlate is now available on various online marketplaces such as Shopee and Tokopedia. More information about NutriPlate is available on social media platforms, including Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok.
Siti Fadilah Noviyanti, the marketing team member of NutriPlate, hopes their broad market reach will cover the entire archipelago.
“For more information about NutriPlate, visit our Instagram @pkmkugm_nutriplate,” she added.
Authors: FK-KMK UGM & Lintang
Editor: Agung Nugroho
Contributor: UGM NutriPlate Team