Circular Economy Opportunities in Agri-food Sector in Indonesia
Circular economy is a concept that has the opportunities to accelerate the increase in agricultural productivity in Indonesia. To be able to realize a massive circular economy, of course we have to understand what opportunities we can find in Indonesian agriculture. Therefore, the following are a number of things that have the potential to implement a circular economy in the agricultural sector in Indonesia.
Organic waste problem
Indonesia is a country with the fourth largest population in the world. As a result, the consumption level of the Indonesian people is very high. The amount of organic waste arising from consumption activities is large and has an impact on various environmental damages. Every year Indonesia produces around 64 million tons of waste and 60% of it is organic waste. This organic waste far exceeds other types of waste such as plastic, paper, rubber, or metal. In fact, organic waste is an alternative resource that has a lot of opportunities. Organic waste can be a source of making organic fertilizer that can fertilize plants. In addition, organic waste can also be a resource for biogas production.
High population growth
The facts show that Indonesia has high growth and population. Currently, Indonesia has 275 million people and the number continues to grow. This shows the magnitude of our need for food and nutrition. Therefore, in the future, the agricultural sector is a sector that society still needs at any time. Thus, circular economy efforts to increase agricultural productivity without sacrificing the environment can be a solution for meeting people’s needs. In the future, Indonesia has the opportunities to become a world food barn that can help achieve food security for the people of Indonesia and the world.
Lots of agricultural activity
Indonesia is an agricultural country because many Indonesians work as farmers. Thus the potential for implementing a circular economy will have a big impact if it can be felt by many people. In addition, agricultural land in Indonesia is also one of the largest areas of land in the world. The wider the agricultural land, the wider the opportunities for circular economy implementation. Collaboration between farmers will be wide open and diversified circular activities will be very possible. Differences in climate and weather in each region in Indonesia may be a challenge to implement this idea. However, this is not a major obstacle to the realization of a circular economy in Indonesia.
Pioneer of implementing circular economy
In Indonesia, several pioneers implementing circular economy have started to emerge. Organizations or companies implementing a circular economy, for example Great Giant Pineapple, are innovating to manage agricultural production waste and make the resources they manage more efficient. In addition, there is the Greeneration Foundation which is working with Ecoxyztem to hold a Circular Jumpstart. The event is an incubation of startups based on circular economy principles so that later these startups can have an impact on Indonesia. This will be a role model for start-ups and other companies to participate in implementing circular economy principles which will increase the opportunities for implementing a circular economy on a national scale.
Awareness of various stakeholders is starting to grow
Circular economy requires awareness and cooperation from various parties. The application of circular economy in the agricultural sector also requires the awareness of many stakeholders in the agricultural sector such as farmers, distributors and retailers. Interestingly, many farms have implemented a circular economy, even at the supply chain scale. Apart from that, the role of NGOs and the community is also very important for the circular economy transition in agriculture. For example, in Indonesia, there are Greenpeace and Walhi which carry out many environmental actions.
In addition, the government also plays a role in forming policies that encourage the implementation of a circular economy. Luckily, the government in Indonesia has given a positive response to the transition program towards a circular economy. For example, at the G20 event, Indonesia strongly supports green, blue and circular economy programs in Indonesia. In addition, Bappenas has also issued many policies and literature regarding the implementation of the circular economy in Indonesia. This shows that various important elements in Indonesia have good awareness and cooperation to create bigger opportunities to accelerate the implementation of this idea at the national level.