Where are the local cowboys?

Where are the local cowboys?

When I drove from Balikpapan to Samarinda and then up to
Sangatta, I saw a lot of empty rolling hills covered with grass.

That is Zebu country waiting to be exploited. Grass cattle
breeding is ideal for tropical belt agribusiness.

The Zebu cattle breed, improved since the beginning of the
century, gains weight rapidly while feeding on grass only. The
Zebu produces lean meat, unlike grain-fed cattle. The Zebu
consumes grass growing all year round in the tropical belt. The
cattle feed on grass that grows on land unsuitable for any other
crops.

The meat of the Zebu breed could well replace grain-fed beef
on the local market.

Indonesians' and other Asians' incomes are rising. And they
are developing a taste for good meat and dairy products.

To Brazilians -- whose country has more cattle than people --
it is strange that a country as large as Indonesia still imports
milk, butter and beef. Where are the Indonesian cowboys?

OSVALDO COELHO

Bandung