Developing Cooperative-Based Red Cooking Oil, Coordinating Minister For Small And Medium Enterprises Teten: Cheaper Price Than Ordinary Cooking Oil

Coordinating Minister for SMEs Teten Masduki. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The Minister of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (Menkop and UKM) Teten Masduki ensured that the price of red edible oil which is being optimized and developed by the government will be cheaper than the price of cooking oil that people usually use.

"The selling price to the market is cheaper, because the process is simpler," said Teten Masduki after attending a limited meeting discussing the downstreaming of palm oil at the Presidential Palace, as reported by Antara, Monday, July 18.

Teten said the processing of red edible oil is different from cooking oil in general, which has to go through a bleaching process. Red edible oil without going through the bleaching process so that the protein and vitamin A content is very high.

According to Teten, the President agreed in a limited meeting to develop cooperative-based red edible oil. The government will also build pilot factories for red edible oil production, including in Sumatra and Kalimantan.

"I am optimistic with this red edible oil, because it is healthy and can also be cheaper and this can be accepted by the community," said Teten.

According to Teten, cooperatives can directly buy palm oil from farmers, then process it into CPO and into red edible oil and market it.

"This is a solution for farmers, for whom the price of fresh fruit bunches has been unstable. It is also a solution for a much more even distribution of cooking oil supply, because currently cooking oil factories are mostly in Java. So later there will be two, cooking oil with standards that must be clear, and there is red edible oil produced by the cooperative. So people can choose two products," he explained.

He said that in the country, in fact, there are already industries that make these products. However, the President asked for a pilot project to establish a red edible oil market.