Minister of Industry, Ir. Airlangga Hartarto, M.B.A., M.M.T., accompanied by the Minister of Research, Technology and Higher Education, Prof. H. Mohamad Nasir, Ak, Ph.D, UGM Rector, Prof. Ir. Panut Mulyono, M.Eng., D.Eng., and the Regent of Batang, H. Wihaji, S.Ag., M.Pd, jointly inaugurated the Center for Industry Competency Development in Integrated Cocoa Processing (PPKIPKT) in Wonokerso Village, Kandeman District, Batang Regency on Monday (11/2). The inauguration of the ready-to-consume cocoa bean processing factory was marked by pressing the siren button and cutting the ribbon and followed by a joint visit to the factory location.
The factory was founded by collaboration between the Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education, UGM, and Batang Government which is predicted to become the new icon of Batang Regency. PPKIPKT, which has a number of facilities, is expected to function as a factory as well as a place for research carried out by UGM company in the plantation sector, PT Pagilaran.
The Minister of Industry, Airlangga Hartarto, said the establishment of PPKIPKT was an attempt by the government to get universities to enter the industrialization sector. To lead Indonesia into the 4.0 industrial revolution, universities must first enter the industry.
“With universities entering the industry, increasing it to 4.0 will be easy. In the Ministry of Industry’s program called industrial revolution 4.0, leading sectors involve food and beverages, some of which are coffee, chocolate, pineapple and others,” he said.
He emphasized that as the world’s third cocoa producer Indonesia should not be satisfied just being a cocoa supplier. The domestic industry is expected to be able to turn it into a final product.
“In Indonesia, cocoa processing for export, from raw materials to finished goods, is all exported. Currently, the most important thing is to increase production,” he said.
Minister of Research, Technology and Higher Education, Mohammad Nasir, said that the task of developing cocoa at his ministry is to provide quality seeds. The development of these seeds is important because they can produce the best cocoa.
According to Presidential Regulation Number 36 of 2018, a National Master Plan has been written in which there are 10 fields that must be completed at the Ministry of Research and Higher Education, including preparing a legal plan related to the national innovation system, science and technology, which will later become an umbrella for all existing research in Indonesia. The ten fields include food and agriculture.
Moh Natsir said that providing quality seeds is still a problem until now, as 1 hectare only produces 1 ton of cocoa. Meanwhile in Vietnam 1 hectare can produce more than 4 tons of cocoa.
“Based on research by the Ministry of Research and Higher Education and Puslitkoka, a research center for coffee and cocoa in Jember, one hectare can produce 3.5 tons. We have to consider this and collaborate, think about what to do because the development of these seeds is very important to produce good quality chocolate,” he said.
UGM Rector, Panut Mulyono, added that this industrial teaching facility has an important role, considering cocoa is one of Indonesia’s leading commodities in the world. Demand for cocoa is currently increasing in line with increased consumption in Indonesia, India and China.
It is predicted that cocoa growth will increase by 4 million tons per year worldwide, according to data from The International Cocoa Organization. This is an opportunity that Indonesia should take advantage of to surpass the position of the Netherlands and Germany as producers of processed cocoa in the world today, despite the fact that these two countries are not producers of cocoa.
“One special thing that we are proud of is that this cocoa processing industry stands in the middle of the nucleus cocoa plantation managed by PT. Pagilaran as a business unit owned by UGM. This garden covers an area of about 165 hectares and probably is the first in Indonesia,” he added.
The Regent of Batang, Wihaji, said that the establishment of this factory became a new icon in Batang as the factory serves not only for industry but also for tourism.
“I wish the factory can foster the village around it to become a chocolate village. It is in line with our program in creating 1,000 new entrepreneurs, with the slogan “one village, one product” or one village for one business product,” he said.
He hoped that the establishment of PPKIPKT will be one of the contributors to the acceleration of regional development, investment, tourism and the Human Development Index. “This is in accordance with the President’s instructions reg arding regional acceleration through investment and tourism and I am sure that the cocoa factory managed by UGM can do it,” he said.
Source: https://ugm.ac.id/id/berita/17664-menperin-resmikan-pusat-pengolahan-kakao-terpadu-ugm
