ANTARA promotes national food innovation through "Ragi Nusantara"
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The President Director of Perum LKBN ANTARA, Benny Siga Butarbutar, stated that the agency is striving to inspire and drive innovation in the food sector through the talkshow “Ragi Nusantara: From a Piece of Tempeh for Food Security”.
“For us at ANTARA, food security is not merely an economic or agricultural issue. Food security is a strategic national issue that must be continuously monitored through accurate, balanced, and enlightening information,” he said at the ANTARA Heritage Center, Jakarta, on Wednesday.
He explained that the agency aims to ensure that information regarding food research, technological innovation, the development of local food ingredients, the successes of farmers and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), as well as government policies in the field of food security, does not remain mere academic knowledge, but becomes public knowledge that can inspire and drive change.
He explained that this is necessary because the government requires research and innovation, the business world requires technology, and the public requires access to innovation to become aware of such breakthroughs.
Therefore, ANTARA is endeavouring to build optimism regarding national food security by highlighting various best practices from different regions to inspire the nation.
During the talkshow, details were shared regarding innovations in tempeh starter (ragi) developed by a research team from the University of Indonesia (UI) through the Science and Technology-Based Living Ecosystem Program (Bestari Saintek) of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, funded by the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP).
Benny noted that tempeh is often perceived as lacking nutritional value, whereas in reality, tempeh is what provides Indonesia with a strong bargaining position.
He expressed hope that the information presented in the talkshow could provide a glimpse into the richness of Nusantara’s food resources and inspire innovation to achieve economic growth.
On the same occasion, the Director General of Science and Technology at the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, Ahmad Najib Burhani, stated that he hopes researchers can take further initiative to integrate these simple research results into something of high economic value.
“That is, integrating these very valuable research results into national strategic programmes, such as food security and so on. Imagine the impact if superior starter cultures were connected to the reduction of stunting, for example, through the Ministry of Health,” said Ahmad.