Processed Porang Potential To Boost Exports, Government Facilitates Production Technology

JAKARTA - The government through the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) continues to encourage the potential for the development of the porang processing industry through the assistance of small and medium-sized industries (IKM) by facilitating the improvement of production technology.

The Director-General of Small, Medium and Multifarious Industries (IKMA) of the Ministry of Industry Reni Yanita said the porang processing industry is one of the sectors that is growing positively and is increasingly entering the export market amidst the pressures of the pandemic.

"The porang flour produced has been exported to China," she said as reported by the official website, Sunday, August 22.

According to Reni, currently, business actors are constrained by the injection of technology that the company does not yet have for glucomannan purification from porang tubers. As a result, production is only able to produce porang flour with a content of 60-70 percent glucomannan, while the glucomannan content owned by glucomannan producers in China has reached more than 90 percent.

"This glucomannan content has high economic value because it can be used as raw material for various kinds of products," she said.

To that end, the government provides facilitation of guidance, assistance, and certification, as well as reimbursement for the purchase of machine tools through the machine restructuring program. In addition, the government will also encourage innovation in the manufacture of porang rice and porang noodles.

"In developing porang flour on the scale of farmers or small industries, it is necessary to consider aspects of product absorption in the market," she said.

It was also stated that the Ministry of Industry supports the development of porang processing ecosystems with universities and practitioners in terms of reducing porang's oxalate content so that porang can be processed into other products with high selling value.

"Dome type greenhouse effect dryers and porang chopper machines are being proposed to be used in the pilot project, so that later porang farmers will have added value for their products in accordance with food safety, and keep operating costs low," concluded Reni.