The Jakarta Industry Trade Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (PPKUKM) Agency together with PT Ekonomi Sirkular Indonesia (Surplus Indonesia) is set to hold a Food Product Creation Training from Excess Ingredients for MSME Business.

Excess food has the potential to become leftover food

It will be attended by 340 Jakpreneurs who are divided into 12 waves and conducted in rotation in six PPKUKM Sub-agencies in Jakarta. It is slated to be held in October until December 2021.

The materials given are Food Product Creation from Excess Ingredients and Use of Surplus Applications to Increase Sales.

Industry Division Head, Dhani Hendranala said, it was also an effort to reduce food waste in Jakarta, as well as to make a positive contribution in protecting the environment and economic development in Jakarta.

"Excess food has the potential to become leftover food. Hence, before the expiration date, excess food or ingredients can still be used and then sold at low prices," he expressed, on the sidelines of the opening of the training at the Kembangan Sub-district Office Hall, West Jakarta, Tuesday (10/6).

If it cannot reach the wider community conventionally, he assessed, through this Surplus application, before food becomes leftover or expired, it can still be used, including as raw materials at affordable or cheaper prices.

"Through creation and innovation, leftover or excess food can still be used thus it is not wasted," he explained.

According to the 2018 Food Sustainable Index data published by the Economist Intelligence Unit, he explained, Indonesia ranks second as the largest food waste producer in the world with 13 tons of food wasted every year.

This condition encourages the collaboration of the Jakarta administration with various parties to overcome it. One of them is PT Ekonomi Sirkular Indonesia as a Surplus application provider that provides services to sell excess food that is still fit for consumption thus it is not wasted and can encourage increased sales of Jakpreneur products.

"Jakarta alone produces 4,000 tons of food waste per day. Jakpreneur almost 300,000 participants, plus those who have not joined Jakpreneur can be above 1 million MSME/IMKM actors. If all have the same awareness, plus by using this application, the potential for reducing food waste in Jakarta can be 50 percent," he uttered.

Besides enriching knowledge in the creation of food products, he added, the participants who attended this training had actively participated in protecting the environment by reducing food waste in Jakarta and would be an added value for the participants' businesses.

"Through this collaborative training, they can train to create food products from the excess ingredients they have and contribute to reducing food waste in Jakarta," he added.

As for the information, participants of this training are also provided with materials that can be used for the creation of food products. In addition, participants are also allowed to bring excess materials available at their respective places of business to be created together.