image: The low-calorie noodle formulation developed by Professor Christiani Jeyakumar Henry and his team of scientists at A*STAR’s Singapore Institute of Food and Biotechnology Innovation. view more
Credit: A*STAR and SIFBI
SINGAPORE - Hafnium Ventures and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) have entered an exclusive license agreement, enabling the commercialisation of a low-calorie noodle formulation by NOBA, a spinoff from A*STAR’s Singapore Institute of Food and Biotechnology Innovation (SIFBI).
NOBA aims to provide healthy noodle formulations for local and overseas food manufacturers. The low-calorie noodles are made with plant-based ingredients, and are also high in dietary fibre, while preserving a similar taste and texture to the yellow noodles commonly consumed by Asians. This is the first in the pipeline of several healthy noodle formulations, and the innovation process and formulation was developed by Professor Christiani Jeyakumar Henry and his team of scientists at A*STAR’s SIFBI.
Mr Francis Tan, Partner and Executive Director at Hafnium commented, “This spinoff is a further development of Hafnium’s ‘lab-to-market’ partnership with A*STAR. It will be a great addition to our growing food-tech business as we build on our existing noodle manufacturing expertise with Tai Thong Noodle business in Singapore.” He added, “With health issues such as diabetes and obesity on the rise in Asia, it is important to provide healthier options in the market.”
“This low-calorie noodle is an example of how SIFBI is continuously building on our R&D capabilities and partnerships to create or improve healthier foods for the Asian consumer and palate. Given an increasing global demand for healthy foods, we see more opportunities to develop healthy and innovative food products, and contribute significantly to the food-tech landscape. We look forward to more public-private collaborations with our ecosystem partners to bring about better health outcomes for consumers,” said Dr Hazel Khoo, Executive Director, SIFBI.
The new spinoff will be led by Ms Joyce Chew (CEO – NOBA lead, Hafnium), who commented, “We are excited to work with Professor Jeya and his team to bring this innovative and healthy noodle to the market. We see a growing demand from noodle manufacturers both in Singapore and internationally for innovations like this to meet the shift in consumers’ appetite for healthier versions of traditional products”.
“Food innovations such as this low-calorie noodle formulation are a result of strong public-private partnerships across the R&D ecosystem to transfer A*STAR’s nutritional knowledge and technologies to the industry. As consumers are increasingly health conscious, the demand for healthier, innovative food products creates exciting opportunities for the food innovation ecosystem,” said Professor Tan Sze Wee, Assistant Chief Executive of A*STAR’s Enterprise Division.