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Economy in brief: S. Sumatra to boost rubber and coffee
South Sumatra plans to expand and develop the production and technology of processed rubber and coffee under the Palembang branch of the Industry Ministry’s research and industrial standardization agency (BIPA)
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S
outh Sumatra plans to expand and develop the production and technology of processed rubber and coffee under the Palembang branch of the Industry Ministry’s research and industrial standardization agency (BIPA).
BIPA head Quri Siti Mirah said on Sunday that their research products, namely automotive rubber, rubberized asphalt, silicone for medical devices and vulcanized rubber, are produced at competitive rates while also fulfilling the Indonesian National Standards (SNI).
“We are going to boost the image of South Sumatra’s coffee by developing the downstream programs, especially since [South Sumatra] is Indonesia’s largest coffee producer,” she said in a press release.
According to Quri, South Sumatra is the largest potential of those two commodities. Data provided by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) in 2013 showed that South Sumatra produced 569,170 tons of rubber out of a total of 3 million tons nationwide, while contributing 143,330 tons of coffee out of 691,160 tons total.
Moreover, BIPA has carried out awareness programs for industry standards. According to the National Standardization Agency (BSN), SNI is judged based on several variables, including categorization, cultivation, processing, packaging and equipment.
Quri explained that the agency has been accredited by the National Accreditation Committee (KAN) and also offers product and management system certification, laboratorial examinations, engineering and training.
Meanwhile, Ngakan Timur Antara, head of the Industry Ministry’s central research and industrial standardization agency (BPPI) said the government continues to encourage the use of technology and information in the industry to improve the quality of end products.
“We need more supplements to make sure that the industry players and small and medium enterprises [SMEs] have access to the technology,” he said. — sha
