CTU Argaoโs post-festival training empowers student technologists to protect indigenous food innovations through intellectual property tools
Just a month after the successful Indigenous Plants Food Innovation Festival 2025, the Biodiversity, Environment and Natural Resource Center (BENRC) of Cebu Technological University โ Argao Campus once again brought together its selected food enthusiast technologists for a Utility Model (UM) Drafting Training held on April 28, 2025. Themed โInnovate and Connect: Utility Model for Food Weโll Protect,โ the training aimed to strengthen innovation protection in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)โparticularly SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
Participants were primarily students from the Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management (BSHM) and Bachelor of Technology and Livelihood Education (BTLED) programs. These students had earlier demonstrated exceptional culinary creativity using underutilized indigenous plants during BENRCโs cooking and baking competitions on April 27, 2025. Their original recipes are now slated for utility model applications, with joint ownership between the student food makers and the center.
Leading the training was Engr. Tylo Junior L. van Steenhuyse, a seasoned innovator and resource person with extensive experience in filing utility models for BENRC. His session covered essential drafting techniquesโsuch as writing claims, outlining step-by-step processes, calculating ingredient ratios by weight, and compiling key UM sections like the introduction, detailed description, abstract, and summary.
Drawing from his own experiences as a co-food innovator on several published UMs featuring breadfruit and new cocoyam, Engr. Steenhuyse provided both technical expertise and practical insights. Participants also benefited from the support of BENRCโs food laboratory personnel, who assisted with formulation calculations and ingredient standardization.
This initiative forms part of the Indigenous Food and Nutrition Initiative (IFNI)โa PHP 15-million project funded through the General Appropriations Act (GAA)โwhich seeks to preserve food heritage while fostering innovation, entrepreneurship, and food security.โMelvin T. Benemerito | icpa-ecr
#cebutechargao#foodinnovation#sustainability
