Benefits in misai kucing tea The Star 23 Feb 2008 This official drink of Malacca is gaining in popularity By MOHAMAD BAKRI DARUS MALACCA: Guests at functions organised by the Malacca government até served a local herbal remedy known as MTea which not only ilustrates local hospitality but is also a way to geod health. The state's foreign guests are not only acorded the privilege o sipping Mea ut also Take it back to their respective countries as souvenirs. Declared as the Malacca official drink in May 2007, this beverage, which is similar to the ubiquitous teh-o in taste and colour, has a strong following in the state and is easily avail- able on shelves of supermarkets, ‘What is different about this drink? Ttisa tea made solely from the misai kucing her which hasbeen known forts therapeutic value for generations. MTea comes in sachets packed commercial with the catch phrase “taste the freshness", ‘hanks to Melaka Biotechnology Corporation's efforts in exploiting the therapeutic value of smisai kucing. Melaka Herbs and Plants Sdn Bhd, asubsidi- ay of Pembangunan Pertanian Melaka Sdn Bhd, is entrusted with planting and supplying ‘misai kucing for the production of Mea. Its general manager Samsuddin Manaf said {the herb was of the lamiaceae family and found {in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, grows up to 15m and two ofthe varieties sourced by the company are orthosiphon stam- ineus (lower s purple) and erthosiphon arista- tus (flower is white) ‘The flower’s long filament was the factor that gave the plant its bizarre Malay name ‘hich literally means cat's whiskers, he said in an interview ata 1ha misai kucing farm in the Selandar Permanent Food Production Park in Jasin near here. ‘Samsuddin noted that the company had also planted misai kucing ona 2:8hafarmin Machap, ‘Alor Gajah, “We have no problem in sourcing the seed- lings as itis supplied by another subsidiary of Melaka Biotechnology - Invitro Tech Sdn Bhd = that produces the seedlings through tissue culture.” he sai. ‘About 80% of the misoi kucing is of the ‘orthosiphon aristatus variety that has lots of Teaves, while the rest is of the orchosiphon stomineus variety. It takes three years before the plant is har ‘vested and sent to Melaka Biotechnology for processing into MTea. Melaka Biotechnology chief executive officer Professor Dr Rami Hitam said that MTea was made exclusively of misai kucing leaves. “it has been used for generations to treat irculatory disorders, kidney stones, hyperten- sion and clabetes~ he said It is also recommended for good kidney function, prevention of urinary tract infections, maintaining optimal fiver function and pre- venting gout. The leaves have diuretic elements that help sfiminate uric acid in the body, a source of many physiological problems, Melaka Biotechnology has carried outexten- sive research on miso kucing and MTea is, among the end product Melaka Biotech Holdings Sdn Bhd, another subsidiary ofthe corporation is responsible for ‘marketing, MTea while Pemasaran Melaka Sdn Bhd is tesponsible in distributing “The Mea business is generating income for Easy does it: Worker see eel eft) ‘risa ae how to harvest ‘the farm in Melaka Biotech Holdings Sdn Bhd.” he said, adding that the remedy was promoted within ‘and without the county. Since its introduction, 40,000 boxes (each containing 20 sachets) have been produced, and the company has set the target of 100,000 boxes by the year end, “MTea is available at all 40 Mydin outlets and Melaka Sentral kiosks and its distribution network will be widened to Mesra outlets at Petronas stations and 7-Eleven outlets,” said Rami. z To take a sip of the MTea. just dip a sachet in hhot water for 5 to 10 minutes and it will be ready. — Bernama