5 Thai innovations

[Gaybutton]

Am I missing something? I count only 4 highlighted "innovations". The one that most interests me is the plant based ice cream. I'll have to check with my doctor, but I wouldn't mind giving it a try - if I spot it for sale anywhere. So far I haven't seen it.
_______________________________________________________

Five Thai innovations launched to meet the needs of modern life

by THE NATION

January 25, 2026

“Innovation” has become a key tool for improving the quality of life.

Most recently, the National Innovation Agency, or NIA, the lead body driving Thailand’s innovation system to sustainably elevate the economy and society, unveiled five Thai-developed innovations designed for modern living, spanning the environment, lifestyle, and physical and mental health.

Plant-based ice cream meets the needs of health-conscious consumers

The health and wellness trend, especially preventive health, has made people more aware in every respect, particularly when it comes to food.

“Alternative foods” have also grown in popularity.

Today, consumers want healthier options that still taste good.

Plant-based ice cream is, therefore, an answer for health-conscious consumers, people with lactose intolerance, and vegans.

“Molly Ally”, a plant-based ice cream innovation, uses an Emulsify Integrated System that combines pasteurisation and homogenisation to address the unstable texture of plant fats.

This results in smooth, creamy ice cream with no separation, reduced ice-crystal formation, and an extended shelf life of up to 12 months.

Plants are used as the main ingredients, such as almonds, coconut, soybeans, and oats, in place of cow’s milk.

This product not only delivers quality comparable to dairy ice cream, but also meets the needs of modern consumers who care about health and the environment, allowing them to enjoy desserts while looking after their wellbeing at the same time.

Mind Card… a true web companion for mental wellbeing

The mental health crisis is rising rapidly, especially among younger people.

Data from the Department of Mental Health shows that depression among those aged 20–24 is as high as 20.5%.

Meanwhile, a study among Thai university students found that 45% experience high levels of stress, and 28% have depression.

This is driven by academic pressure, family expectations, concerns about future employment, and the impact of economic conditions.

If these mental health issues are not properly addressed, they may affect quality of life in the long term.

One innovation supporting mental wellbeing among young people is “Mind Card… a true companion for mental wellbeing”, a web application that shifts mental healthcare from reactive to proactive.

It applies positive psychology to create a tool that helps users care for themselves before problems become more severe.

The platform is designed to capture attention through beliefs around fortune and destiny, helping users feel they are “shaping their own fate” by choosing cards that match what they are currently facing.

This opens up a thinking process, builds awareness, and leads to self-reflection.

The system then presents an overall mental health risk profile, and an AI system generates personalised recommendations.

Users learn how to manage emotions, understand their thoughts, and find ways to cope with challenges on their own.

The platform also tracks progress and adjusts the care plan to suit individual needs, building resilience against depression, anxiety, and stress, which are three key causes of mental health problems among students.

This innovation is therefore not only a mental well-being tool, but a preventive system that helps young people build stronger inner strength to get through difficult periods in life, supporting a society that genuinely values mental well-being.

Enjoyable travel with top community experiences

One innovation that is interestingly changing Thai lifestyles is the “Chiang Mai Jazz City” project.

Chiang Mai is a city with a strong start-up ecosystem and is also a hub for digital nomads, modern professionals who use technology and the internet to work remotely from around the world.

Supported by NIA, the project aims to become an international music city through three key strategies: developing lessons for Lanna instruments and shared rhythm-making between local instruments and international music, an innovation that has never been done before, requiring highly skilled experts to design the curriculum; creating a space for emerging musicians to build profiles and opportunities to showcase themselves; and building a distinctive brand identity through typography, mascots, and colours that reflect “Chiang Mai jazz”, creating recognition on the international stage.

The project not only preserves local music but also aims to build a sustainable creative economy for communities, generating income for local musicians and growing the music-festival business for people in the area.

While Chiang Mai is elevating music culture, Songkhla has created an innovation that transforms travel and health through the “WalkWing” platform, which turns everyone’s “steps” into value through Walkable City and Local Tourism activities.

The key feature of WalkWing is that users do not just count steps; they can also create missions and activities that encourage people to go out and walk to complete tasks.

For example, users can walk through new tourist spots and explore unseen routes created by local communities, targeting both Thai and international tourists, especially Malaysians.

The platform delivers positive impact in multiple dimensions: as more people travel on foot, it stimulates the economy through spending at shops and restaurants, builds relationships between tourists and communities, promotes health, and motivates more people to exercise.

These two innovations show how modern lifestyles can connect local culture, health, the community economy, and sustainable tourism, creating opportunities for young people to build careers from what they love and take pride in, while also strengthening local communities through income generation.

Innovation turns “food waste” into something useful

The “waste” problem is significant: Thais generate an average of 86 kilograms of food waste per person per year, compared with the global average of 79 kilograms per person per year.

This food waste produces greenhouse gases, worsening the intensifying global warming crisis each year.

The United Nations has set a target for all countries to cut food waste by 50% by 2030.

This means Thailand must reduce food waste by about three million tonnes per year, or an average of 43 kilograms per person.

To tackle this, an innovation called “INNOWASTE” was developed, a machine that converts food waste into high-quality soil and fertiliser, turning waste into a new resource.

It takes only 1–2 hours to break down food scraps, producing nutrient-rich soil packed with essential minerals.

It also helps reduce waste incineration and lowers carbon footprints.

“INNOWASTE” therefore not only addresses environmental and social challenges, but also creates added value by turning waste into resources, supporting a sustainable circular economy.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/he ... s/40061683

[2lz2p]

Enjoyable travel with top community experiences

Has the following comment:

While Chiang Mai is elevating music culture, Songkhla has created an innovation that transforms travel and health through the “WalkWing” platform, which turns everyone’s “steps” into value through Walkable City and Local Tourism activities.

Apparently, they are counting each location as being separate innovations, thus making a total of 5. While the ice cream sounds interesting, it doesn't mention how many calories or sugar content it may have. For me, that would be an important issue as to whether to give it a try - of course as GB points out, where would one find it.

[Jun]

There are plenty of plant based ice creams already on sale, at least in the UK. I'd be surprised if there's a significant difference in calorie count, or other nutritional properties.

Although, when experimenting with a low carb diet for a couple of weeks in the UK, I found the Tesco Soya yoghurt was far lower in carbs than milk yoghurt and the skimmed milk that I use for making my own yoghurt.

So there may be some surprises. But could the Thais really resist adding too much sugar ?

As for the list, it's not exactly up there with railways, gas turbines, pneumatic tyres and the steel production process.

[Gaybutton]

Ice cream - ahhhh yes, I remember that. Unfortunately for me, on this liver-friendly diet I'm keeping myself on, ice cream of any kind is verboten.

I do eat yogurt, though. I make my own. I use zero fat milk. It comes out runny, but I bought a Greek yogurt strainer and it works perfectly. I ordered it from Temu - 216 baht. The yogurt comes out nice and thick and the whey is healthy, so I use the whey and sometimes even just drink it. It takes about 2 hours to fully strain and drain. I eat it plain or add blueberries or strawberries or raspberries. Sometimes I add a little honey too. That substitutes for my ice cream craving and that's my innovation . . .



Folks, once again if you really set your mind to it you can lose weight. So far I've lost over 22kg - about 50lb and still trying to lose more.

If interested, see the "A Slight Change for GB" topic - viewtopic.php?t=12178

[Jun]

I do eat yogurt, though. I make my own. I use zero fat milk.

I also make my own yoghurt, using the low fat UHT milk. My yoghurt maker is a 1.1 litre tub from Mr DIY, approx 40 baht, which sits in another 15 baht tub.

Here, I mix some of the old yoghurt in with a litre of UHT milk. I then plonk that in a tub of boiling water and leave it whilst I go out for the day. Typically about 8 hours. No straining.

The original starter batch was a spoonful from the one with the "Low Sugar" blue stripe on the foil cap (15 baht in 7-Eleven). Purchased in November. I've been using yoghurt from the previous batch ever since.

In the UK, I microwave the UHT milk to ensure a starting temperature of around 44 C and gradually allow it to cool down to about 30C.
What I do in Thailand appears to get similar result, as the tub of water warms the milk up and quickly cools down towards room temperature..

No straining and certainly no honey.