Research institute targets small businesses<\/p>\n
Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta<\/p>\n
Good news for small farmers and prospective entrepreneurs. The
\nIndonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) has opened a unit to help
\nwith research development to add value to agricultural products.<\/p>\n
The Technical Service Unit (UPT) of the Chemical Technology
\nand Process Development Agency (BPPTK) at Gading village, Playen,
\nGunungkidul, was set up in 2002 with the aim of becoming a
\nleading working unit in implementing the results of development
\nand research activities in the food, animal feed and chemical
\nindustry.<\/p>\n
The UPT BPPTK was a consequence of the reorganization in LIPI
\nand previously encompassed three separate units in Bandung (West
\nJava), Lampung, and Yogyakarta under the control of the
\ninstitute's UPT of Chemical Processed Material Development Agency
\n(BBOK).<\/p>\n
Occupying an office of some 28,000 square meters on a 3.5-
\nhectare plot of land, the unit has helped local farmers in
\nincreasing production and marketing.<\/p>\n
\"One of our main tasks is indeed helping small and medium
\nenterprises produce innovative, marketable products, thus helping
\nto improve the people's welfare,\" Head of the UPT BPPTK Putut
\nIrwan Pudjiono told The Jakarta Post in a recent interview.<\/p>\n
A group of salak pondoh farmers in the sub-district of Turi,
\nSleman, for example, was assisted in producing canned salak
\npondoh, or snake fruit, for export. The farmers earlier
\ncomplained that their income had dropped as a result of the
\ndeclining price of the fruit.<\/p>\n
Another group of rebung (bamboo shoot) farmers in a Central
\nJava region, received support in the production of canned bamboo
\nshoots, in order to increase the value of the commodity.<\/p>\n
The unit is equipped with adequate human resources and modern
\nfacilities including a laboratory and a processing room with a
\ncanning line, tempeh maker, drying appliance, flour mills, and
\nother supporting facilities such as clean water processor and
\nwaste disposal facility.<\/p>\n
The laboratory, measuring 20 square meters, is designed for
\nconducting biological, chemical, and physical tests or analysis.<\/p>\n
\"We welcome anyone in need of our help,\" said Putut, adding
\nthat the unit usually offers free research to its clients and
\nexperiment needed for the goods or commodity in question, until
\nthey are ready for market production.<\/p>\n
\"We only charge them for the processing once a particular
\nproduct is considered ready to be launched in the market. For
\ncanning, for example, we require them to pay Rp 4,000 (45 U.S.
\ncents) per can excluding the label,\" Putut said.<\/p>\n
The unit also does its own research on processed food and
\nintroduces the samples and products to interested businesspeople.
\nThe products include canned tempeh curry, tempeh bacem (sweet
\nfried tempeh), baby corn, pineapple, fruit cocktail, quail eggs,
\nbamboo shoots, snake fruit, and kolang-kaling (sugar palm
\nfruits).<\/p>\n
The unit's maximum production capacity is 10,000 cans daily.<\/p>\n
\"Our canned tempeh products have even been marketed in the
\nU.K., and served on the main menu at a hospital there,\" said
\nPutut but declined to name the hospital or its location.<\/p>\n
The unit also produce processed food made of mushroom.<\/p>\n
\"Although it is the result of a relatively new research
\nprogram, we have so far succeeded in making samples of bottled
\nand canned mushrooms. We have even succeeded in further producing
\nprocessed mushroom including mushroom sausage, nugget, abon jamur
\n(shredded, dried mushroom), and bakso jamur (mushroom sausage),\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Also noteworthy is the unit's joint effort with some non-
\ngovernment organizations and local governments in developing a
\ntempeh-based flour used as a supplementary ingredient to produce
\nnutritious food for infants and toddlers under five years of age
\nand elementary school students.<\/p>\n
\"People have widely recognized it as BMC (bahan makanan
\ncampuran) formulated flour,\" Putut said.<\/p>\n
He added that UPT BPPTK was also conducting research and
\ndevelopment activities on animal feed and organic products. The
\nunit has developed a special dried grass to feed the cattle
\nduring the dry season.<\/p>\n
It has also initiated the \"integrated cow and chicken farming
\nsystem\". In it, cow manure is used as a medium to grow worms to
\nfeed chickens. The cow manure is also used as the raw material
\nfor producing biogas as an alternative energy source.<\/p>\n
The organic development program aims to produce competitive
\nand added value products, technology and service. The current
\norganic products on research include mengkudu (Java nony) fruit,
\npare (bittergourd), akar wangi (fragrant roots of a spice tree),
\nbetel leaves, and empon-emponan (herbal plants).<\/p>\n
Examples of the products of this category include bengkoang
\n(tuber) flour, mengkudu flour, turmeric flour, and ginger flour.
\nOthers include sliced, dried agricultural commodities and
\ndistilled products such as atsiri oil, ginger oil, clove oil, and
\nfurfural (an organic chemical agent used in natural oil drilling
\nactivities).<\/p>\n
\"The research and production are made possible through
\ncooperation with the private sector. Thank God, the production
\nkeeps increasing although it is as a whole still produced in a
\nlimited volume,\" Putut said, adding that the unit's activities
\nare mainly funded by the state budget. This year alone, the
\ngovernment has allocated Rp 710 million for research and
\ndevelopment.<\/p>\n
UPT BPPTK currently has 44 employees including research staff,
\ntechnicians and analysts, administrative staff and production
\nexecutives.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/research-institute-targets-small-businesses-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}