The Importance Of Socializing Food Substitutions In The Middle Of High Food Prices

Illustration of food prices (Photo: dock. Antara)

JAKARTA - Socialization regarding food consumption substitution is considered very important. This is a solution in the midst of rising prices for basic commodities.

Senior Economist Indef Aviliani said that in the future Indonesia also needs to socialize how to eat healthy and change its diet to look for food substitutions.

"I think it is a solution, a key, not only in terms of supply, but in terms of demand sites that need to be keywords," said Aviliani quoting Antara.

He conveyed that the government should intensively disseminate food consumption substitutions or substitutes for food ingredients but have the same function, as a solution in the midst of an increase in the prices of basic commodities.

According to him, changing diet to food ingredients that have a similar function is the key in overcoming this problem. For example, if the price of meat is expensive, then fish or chicken can be an alternative that both contain protein.

"Substitutions change, so for example, for example, the price of meat is expensive, so we already eat fish, or we eat chicken, so the important thing is protein. That's called substitution, rice is expensive, then sweet potatoes are cheap, why don't we eat sweet potatoes, both carbohydrates," explained Aviliani.

He also highlighted the importance of substitutions in terms of carbohydrates, such as replacing rice with cassava which has the same function as a source of carbohydrates.

According to him, understanding of this substitution can help reduce the price of goods because it creates variations in public consumption.

"So what is called a substitution is to change our food, not rice, outside of rice, but the same thing as carbohydrates. Cassava is cheap, right, people think it's not eating cassava, even though I think it's both carbohydrates, and the carbohydrates are healthy," said Aviliani.

Even so, he appealed to the public not to overdo shopping so as to prevent the scarcity of goods in the market, especially basic foodstuffs. This is important to maintain food availability for the entire community.

According to him, collective awareness and shared responsibility are needed to maintain the stability of basic commodities.

"With us being smart, later we will sell and lose to us, which he previously sold expensively, he will sell cheaply again," he said.

Meanwhile, in the context of increasing food independence, he also highlighted the importance of increasing production and use of technology in the food sector.

"Then from the production side, I think we should immediately use high technology, so we must be able to become a food exporting country, no longer a food importer," said Aviliani.