Aitor, Sheila, Iñigo, Ainoa, Marc and so on, until 15 names were classmates and members of the department of research at the Higher School of Technical Industrial Engineering of the University of the Basque Country in Bilbao. They were also friends of the kitchen, the dishes potent, but at the same time they were preoccupied with enjoying other foods more healthy.
it Is so in 2016, when the university is asked to provide a proposal on the development of a research project, instead of doing it on engines or precision machinery opted for new technologies that could contribute to a healthy diet. “We think that many people are not willing to change their eating habits or cooking of the same. We believed that the solution was to change their dishes,” says Ander Mendez, director of the project.
So began the birth of a dish designed, researched, developed and patented as a System Hi, able to absorb part of the oil and grease from a meal that, according to its inventors, can lead to a saving of up to 30% of the calories existing in the same, a total of between 100 and 200 calories less for the body, without changing the flavors. The research, says the director, “is based on the contributions of the 15 partners we embarked on the project.”
sea Sponges
The mechanism used for the development of this technology is inspired by the sea sponges and the kamon of japanese culture. “The kamon are badges monochrome composed by silhouettes whose proportions represent the essence of japanese design”, they assure in the company. For its part, the sponges, indicates Ander Mendez, are animals that live without work. “Simply to be stops, they feed by filtering the water and the oxygen Kolaybet for the pores and channels of its structure”.
Following that model, the researchers from the university of basque, all of them in the twenties, developed during two years studying to get a technology to absorb fats, oils and grease of any food deemed not healthy. Those jobs will materialize in a surface that is used as the base of each dish, composed of close to 1,500 pores, capable of separating fat from food and filtering, taking into account the different densities of each type of oil. Absorption, according to the director, there is no added difficulty at the time of cleaning those 1.500 cavities of each plate, can be used for systems of usual washing of the dishes.
With the technology, the group of researchers went to the constitution of the company Hello Dinnerware. Received awards in Spain and abroad, and were given support to make the first steps from the town Hall of Getxto and mainly from the Diputación Foral de Bizkaia.
at The beginning tried to make in Spain. However, the conversations never came to a good end to the difficulties that they faced from industries. First, because they considered that it was an initiative with a roll of scarce, but, above all, by the difficulty and the complexity of the redesign of the ceramic plate. Closed those doors, since the company sought outlets for their production on the outside. Finally, at present the dishes Hi are produced in two plants, one in China and one in the north of Germany.
The first units were put into the markets on the 1st of January. According to the data handled by the company, to date, we have marketed more than 10,000 units to a average prices of 15 euros and the company has had a turnover of more than € 100,000. The founders are members and some are working on the project. The marketing of the dishes makes it especially in Spain, especially in establishments of more specialised, ranging from stores to the parapharmacies. The medium-term objective is to export the product to the rest of the community countries in the same establishments. With their invention, entrepreneurs want to help people have a balanced diet but warn that they do not make miracles. “It is important to exercise and plan your diet to lose weight”, they say.
