The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Dairy Store might add two new flavors to its line of products thanks to UNL students who brought back ideas from southern India.
Yulie Meneses Gonzalez, a food science graduate student, and Alex Nelson, a senior food science major, spent a month in India this summer learning and making a variety of Indian dairy products.
Agreements between UNL and two universities in India – Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University in Chennai and Sri Venkateswara Veterinary University in Tirupati – made this trip possible. The food science department, funds from the NU Foundation and private donations financed the trip.
They decided to develop pistachio-flavored milk and gulab jamun, a popular Indian dessert, to be sold in the Dairy Store.
Nelson said their ultimate goal in going to India as the first group of exchange students under these partnerships was to be ambassadors for UNL. Nelson said he saw this as a good opportunity to visit somewhere outside the U.S., something he had never done before.
Rolando Flores, head of the department of food science and technology, also wanted them to learn from the biggest dairy-producing country in the world. Flores said bringing back ideas for new dairy products is important because Nebraska has its own dairy plant and dairy store.
Flores said he was pleased that Nelson and Meneses Gonzalez managed to produce the products on a bench scale last week. A market test will be done at the end of the year to see how customers are accepting the Indian foods in Nebraska, Flores said, and ultimately to determine if anyone will buy them.
Nelson said it should be fairly easy to get people interested in the pistachio-flavored milk because pistachios are somewhat common in the U.S. Gulab jamun, a traditional dessert made of dough and milk solids, might be a harder sell because of how new it is to American consumers. However, Nelson said he and Meneses Gonzalez enjoyed gulab jamun the first time they tried it, so he believes others will like it if they give it a chance.
Meneses Gonzalez has successfully created the right flavor for gulab jamun, but she’s not quite there yet for the pistachio-flavored milk as she has not found the right flavor for the milk.
Meneses Gonzalez and Nelson will conduct a seminar Nov. 30 in Filley Hall on East Campus, presenting their experiences while abroad. They’ll also talk about the products they’re introducing and get input from the public.
Flores said the trip was meant to “put teeth into” the agreements between UNL and its counterparts in India. These agreements are important because they will be beneficial in terms of sharing knowledge and exposing Nebraska to global markets that could promote economic development opportunities, he said.
The food science and technology department wants its students to get a global dimension and practical application, Flores said.
“We want to train our students for the future, let them have life-changing experiences, have fun, learn new cultures, learn something new and bring it back here to implement,” he said.
ruthangelina@dailynebraskan.com
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