JAKARTA - Presidential Chief of Staff (KSP) Moeldoko, said that currently national stock can be sufficient because rice production is in good condition. He revealed that national rice production has reached a surplus in the last three years because it is supported by the La Nina wet weather phenomenon.
However, he is worried that next year Indonesia will experience a shortage of rice stocks due to the drought or El Nino phenomenon.
"The risk could be crop failure. For that we have to prepare food substitution. One of them is sorghum," said Moeldoko when giving a public lecture at Unima, Saturday, December 17, as quoted from Antara.
The retired TNI then revealed that the dependence of the community on rice was still very high. Currently, the community's need for rice reaches 2.5 million tons per month.
For this reason, he considered, education and socialization need to be carried out regarding the importance of alternative food sources. This step is to reduce people's dependence on rice.
For this reason, Moeldoko appreciates the State University of Manado (Unima), North Sulawesi, which has contributed to efforts to strengthen food security by developing sorghum plant cultivation.
According to him, the development of sorghum plants in Unima is a tangible manifestation of the university's commitment to participate in maintaining national food resistance.
"This is also an education and socialization of the importance of alternative food sources so that we don't just depend on rice," said Moeldoko, who was named "Mr. Sorghum Indonesia".
Meanwhile, Unima has prepared 50 hectares of land for the development of sorghum. In the early stages, sorghum planting was carried out on an area of three hectares located in the campus area in Tonsari Village, South Tondano District, Minahasa, North Sulawesi.
Meanwhile, Unima Chancellor Deitje A. Katuuk said the development of sorghum cultivation in Unima was triggered by the threat of a global food crisis.
According to him, universities must take part in responding to these challenges by taking concrete steps, not just discussing.
"We (Unima) are also inspired by Pak Moeldoko who continues to echo the issue of sorghum as an alternative source of food," he said.
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