The product, a particular type of rice, produced by a project of the Facultad Tecnológica in 2008, with the support of the Fundación para la Innovación Agrícola (FIA), is in the process of obtaining its corresponding patent.There was a high national and international impact in May 2008, because of this new type of reconstituted rice obtained from by-products of the polishing process of this cereal, such as spikes, defective pieces, flour and others. The important finding is that it requires less time and only a quarter of water than the traditional rice usually used for cooking. It has also been developed with a variety of flavors, nutrients and fiber to make it competitive.The leader of this project was Laura Almendares, researcher at the Department of Science and Food Technology, Facultad Tecnológica. She was supported by the Fundación para la Innovación Agrícola and by other researchers from the University and rice producers from Parral, in the Maule Region, and El Huique, in the O'Higgins Region.Four years after this stage of research, Professor Almendares is now actively working in obtaining the corresponding patent for her creation and in the generation of projects to achieve the commercialization of this innovative product.In this context, the academic recently presented a paper in Brazil at the workshop "Potential and Qualities of Rice from the West Frontier area." This event brought together researchers, farmers and rice entrepreneurs from Santa Marta - where 80 percent of Brazil’s rice is produced- and was organized by the Federal University of Pampa, with funding from the National Council for Scientific and National Development."With the support of Unipampa we generated contacts with businessmen with the aim of consolidating the business model of our rice, so that it can be produced industrially and enter the market" said the specialist Almendares on her visit to Brazil.Efforts are also made in Chile. In this regard, this researcher of the Facultad Tecnológica explores different tools to market her product among consumers in a massive way, even at the Corfo level."It wasn’t easy because it’s unusual for a university to generate a patent for a product to be marketed (in a massive way)", she said. However, she recognizes that there is a large Chilean rice company interested in producing and distributing the rice created in the laboratories of our university. Thus, this kind of rice could be soon on Chilean and foreign supermarkets shelves.
