Strengthen Food Policy Based On Research And Innovation, National Food Agency Collaborates With BRIN

Head of the National Food Agency (Bapanas) Arief Prasetyo Adi. (Photo: Doc. Public Relations of the National Food Agency)

The National Food Agency collaborates with the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) to strengthen national food security by utilizing research and innovation in the food sector.

Head of the National Food Agency (NFA) Arief Prasetyo Adi said research and innovation are two things that cannot be separated in an effort to strengthen the national food sector.

"Therefore, today NFA together with BRIN (National Research and Innovation Agency) agreed to strengthen cooperation marked by the signing of a memorandum of understanding on research, development, assessment, and application of the results of inventions and innovations, as well as policies for improving development in the food sector," he said in an official statement, Tuesday, July 4.

With this collaboration, said Arief, it is hoped that it will have a major impact on the progress of the national food sector, considering that BRIN is the most credible state institution in the field of research and innovation in Indonesia.

Through this collaboration, continued Arief, various food strengthening programs will be carried out, including aspects of food availability and stability, malnutrition of food and nutrition, as well as diversity of consumption and food security.

One of the urgent work with BRIN's friends is the cooperation in developing and unifying food data from stocks and food prices in all regions. We must know exactly how many 9 food commodities are in the regions, because they are very crucial and determine policy directions," he said.

Arief said that previously the cooperation between NFA and BRIN had been running for a number of programs, including the preparation of rice quality standards and vanilla, the study of Indonesia's position in the International Codex forum, the issuance of technical recommendations for the issuance of Good Handling Application Certificates (SPPB PSAT), to the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for food price forecasting. Currently, the cooperation is still ongoing.

Before our MoU, we had worked a lot with BRIN. The signing of this memorandum of understanding further strengthens the collaboration that has been very well established. One of the latest is the demonstration cooperation in the superior seed planting area in Sukamandi with ID FOOD and Sang Hyang Seri member of ID FOOD," he said.

"In this area, we ask for BRIN's support for the preparation of superior seeds which will later be mass-produced to fulfill the Government Rice Reserve (CBP)," he continued.

Seeing the wide potential for cooperation in food development with BRIN, Arief invites all Provincial and Regency/City Food Affairs Offices to collaborate similarly in their respective regions, so that more research, development, and innovation are born based on the local potential of each region.

See what regional potential can be developed and focus there. We should prioritize research and innovation as the main basis and considerations in policymaking, especially related to food. Policies that have strong research references can be a precise and targeted solution," he added.

Meanwhile, the Head of BRIN, Laksana Tri Handoko, said that BRIN is ready to fully support the National Food Agency, especially in making science and data-based policies.

"Because if we talk about food, if it is not based on data and figures, it has the potential to produce inappropriate policies, especially since Indonesia is a continuous country, where the need for accurate and legitimate data in each location is very important to ensure production, including the entire series of food supply chains," he explained.

He also said that he also supported the specific cooperation in the food sector between Regional BRIN and all food affairs offices.

"Don't hesitate to ask for the support of Regional BRIN to support the implementation of food policies, for example related to detailed studies, data, or research," he said.