Soft-bone fish product to spur additional income for fishermen in Tok Bali

By Bashariah Zainuddin

BACHOK, Aug 19  (Bernama) --  The efforts carried out by Universiti Malaysia Kelantan through its Institute of Poverty Research and Management (InsPeK) to develop a technology to produce soft-bone fish will generate an additional source of income for fishermen in Tok Bali area.

InsPeK Academic and Services Head Dr. Nurhanan Abdul Rahman said the product which is processed using high technology, can be a very convenient source of food for consumers as it has a unique taste and is safe for consumption.

“For those who are always on the go, the soft fish texture is a good choice because it can be eaten without heating or being recooked after removing the product from the packaging,” he said when met by Bernama here today.

The soft-bone fish flesh is made from fresh fishes such as sardinella (Ikan tamban) with bones and red snapper, which was supplied by Tok Bali fishing port, will be manufactured at the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) factory.

“Then, the soft-bone fish will be prepared using an instant paste which was produced by the Tok Bali Women Entrepreneur Group accordingly to Malaysian taste buds,” he added.

Dr Nurhanan said UMK was now ready to transfer technology through its knowledge transfer programme to targetted groups so that they could produce better quality products in future. 

“This move is necessary if we want to keep up with the current development in the surrounding areas when the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project starts soon,” he said.

On the future plans for the soft-bone fish, Dr Nurhanan said InsPeK was ready to meet the Health Ministry to propose on the use of soft bone fish for patients in the government and private hospitals as it was available at all time, and it was a healthy food since the bones are soft.

“It is also nutritious food for the security forces who are serving the country’s borders or on international missions when they find it difficult to find halal food,” he said, adding the soft-bone fish is becoming a trend to replace sardines.

The study on soft-bone fish began in September last year while food analyses, tasting, and packaging were completed in June this year. UMK had used 10 kilogrammes of each type of fish for testing.

-- BERNAMA