Until 2024, the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) notes that Indonesia still imports five major food commodities, namely rice, beef, garlic, corn and sugar. This high dependence on food imports often triggers inflation and burdens the national economy. For this reason, efforts to preserve and develop local food need to be prioritized, especially through sustainable food diversification to support food independence, economic stability and national food security. However, efforts to preserve and increase local food production are not easy. Policies and programs to diversify local food consumption that have long been implemented have not shown significant results in increasing local food consumption. The main challenges include limited availability of local food due to prolonged drought, uncompetitive prices, and inconsistent product quality as there are no quality standards for local food.
Food Security
According to data from the National Food Agency and the Ministry of Agriculture in 2019, Indonesia has 77 species of local food plants that are sources of carbohydrates, fats, proteins, as well as various types of vegetables, fruits, and spices. Some examples of potential local food commodities include:
- Cassava
- Sweet potato
- Banana
- Corn
- Breadfruit
- Ganyong
- Sago
- Pumpkin
- Arrowroot/ arrowroot/current/selarut tubers
- Taro
- Suweg/iles-iles/porang
- Gadung
- Gembili
- Sorghum/cantel
From the many examples of potential local foodstuffs available in the community, according to the National Food Agency, people’s consumption patterns are still not diverse, nutritionally balanced and safe, which means that energy consumption from grains, oils, fats and animal foods still exceeds ideal consumption. In contrast, tubers, nuts, and vegetables and fruits are still lower than the expected food pattern standard. This shows that not all local foods are widely studied or cultivated by the community. If we only rely on one commodity, it means that we do not appreciate the diversity and richness of our biological resources.
To encourage the development of local food, a comprehensive strategy is needed, including:
First, an approach with the utilization of food processing technology carried out by changing the original form of local food and enriching its nutritional value in order to improve the image of local food, directed at certain segments of society that adjust to a practical lifestyle of presentation and processing, in collaboration with universities and research institutions. For example, analog rice from corn, sago, cassava, porang, etc.
Second, the approach of maintaining local wisdom towards the local food pattern culture. This is done through socialization and promotion in order to be confident that local food consumption patterns are very wise to maintain both in terms of health and cultural preservation. For example, making embal from Maluku, Rasi in Cirendeu, thiwul in Java, Sinonggi and Kabuto in Southeast Sulawesi, etc.
Third, expanding promotion and increasing consumer preference for local food through modification or innovation of food products that can eliminate boredom for consumers. In addition, the utilization of information technology such as marketplaces and social media can be used as a form of marketing strategy to expand product promotion. The government has a crucial role in encouraging the promotion of local food ingredients. The lack of support from the government can lead to low public awareness of the importance of local food consumption.
The Special Region of Yogyakarta itself has great potential in the development of local foods, such as sweet potatoes, cassava, ganyong, arrowroot tubers, and corn. These carbohydrate-rich foods can be processed into staple foods, such as sweet potato klepon, taro getuk, ganyong getuk, and lethek noodles. In addition, Yogyakarta’s local fruits, especially salak pondoh, are processed into products such as dodol salak, manisan salak, salak chips, and various other foods. Other local fruits, such as yellow kepok banana and kluthuk banana, despite their low selling value, can still be maximized into more attractive and value-added processed products.
Collaboration between farmers, government and the private sector is the key to developing and marketing local food effectively. With an integrated approach, local food is expected to become the backbone of sustainable national food security.
Then, what is the role of the community in supporting local food? According to Dr. Riska Purnama, a lecturer at one of the state universities as well as a local food activist in Yogyakarta, by buying food commodities produced by local farmers that are widely sold in traditional markets, as well as choosing processed food products typical of a region, in addition to supporting local food can also drive the regional economy. Also, buying vegetables and fruits according to the season that are easily available, will reduce the risk of adding preservatives because it does not require a long trip. In addition, by consuming staple foods other than rice, it becomes one of the ways to diversify food independently. Last but not least, don’t forget market snacks sold on the side of the road, most of which use local ingredients, such as sengkulun, lupis, gathot, getuk, kipo, jamu gendong, and many more. With these simple steps, the community not only supports the sustainability of local food, but also contributes to the preservation of culinary culture and the overall strengthening of the regional economy.
By: Dinar Mindrati Fardhani, Ph.D (Lecturer in Biotechnology at UNISA Yogyakarta)
Tags: aisyiyah, banggamenjadiunisa, beunisa, ketahanan pangan, unisayogya
