E

ager to realize Riau'€™s declared goal of self-sufficiency in food production, the provincial administration is pushing a campaign to popularize sago and turn it into a staple to substitute rice.

Riau interim governor Arsyadjulaindi '€œAndi'€ Rachman said to reach the target of food self-sufficiency, the most realistic staple in Riau was sago, due to the rapid pace of land conversion from rice fields to oil palm plantations.

'€œTo achieve self-sufficiency in sago, the opportunities are wide open, so the government and society must work shoulder to shoulder to realize the goal,'€ Andi said on Thursday during an event to commemorate World Food Day, themed '€œI Love Local Food'€.

According to Andi, Riau is on track to achieve the target of food self-reliance, given the abundance in sago, which mostly grows on the eastern coast of Sumatra, especially in the regencies of Meranti Islands, Bengkalis and Indragiri Hilir.

'€œMeranti Islands is so far known as the biggest sago producer in Indonesia. But its potential has not been fully tapped so far,'€ he added.

According to him, the declaration of self-sufficiency in sago aimed at improving the ability to produce sago independently, provide various kinds of staple foods and meet the people'€™s requirements of security, quality and nutrition.

'€œWe also wish to raise the added value and competitiveness of the sago commodity on the domestic as well as international market,'€ he said.

He has instructed the relevant agencies to conduct campaigns and encourage innovation, so that sago could become an alternative staple to rice and be readily available at a reasonable price.

At the same occasion, the Agriculture Ministry'€™s Food Security Agency head Garjita Budi expressed support for Riau'€™s intention to make sago a prime commodity.

'€œPeople'€™s dependence on rice should end. Sago meets the requirements as a staple food to replace rice. Many people in neighboring countries also consume various food products based on sago,'€ he said.

According to him, rice consumption could be contained given the presence of alternatives. '€œIt doesn'€™t mean we are against rice imports or are avoiding them. As long as the regions have potential for staple foods that can be revitalized, the government will continue to support it in order to avoid importing rice,'€ said Garjita.

Separately, Meranti Islands acting regent Edy Kusdarwanto said sago was not a second-class staple or food consumed by the underprivileged.

In the long run, he added, the regency'€™s administration aimed to process sago into molasses and instant noodles to raise its competitiveness.

'€œMass production is no easy task, but we will make efforts in that direction. If realized, it would certainly be beneficial to the community, because more and more sago would be needed to create derivative products,'€ he said.