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Kemenperin Is Pushing For More Variety In Palm Oil Products, Extending Benefits All The Way To Crafts And Batik

The Ministry of Industry is pushing for more value-added palm oil products to boost their market value. This downstream effort helps maintain Indonesia's status as the world's largest palm oil producer, with an impressive output of 45.5 million metric tons annually. "Downstream processing of palm oil can create useful products for crafts and batik. Byproducts like stearin and even palm kernel waste can be used to make color resist materials (batik malam) and natural dyes for batik," said Andi Rizaldi, head of the Standardization and Industrial Services Policy Agency (BSKJI) of the Ministry of Industry, during a statement in Jakarta on Thursday (August 29). Besides palm kernel waste, palm fronds can also be transformed into various art products through weaving skills, thanks to their strong fiber that’s easy to shape. One of the regions with a significant palm oil plantation area is South Kalimantan. According to data from the South Kalimantan Palm Oil Entrepreneurs Association (GAPKI), the palm oil plantation area in South Kalimantan spans 427,000 hectares, providing ample resources for developing palm oil-based crafts and batik industries. This potential has led to the organization of the Palm Oil Product Diversification Promotion event in South Kalimantan, along with a Halal Product Promotion Workshop focusing on Halal, Batik, and Weaving Crafts, taking place over four days from August 21-24, 2024, in Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan.

The event was organized through a collaboration between the Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency (BPDPKS) and two units under the guidance of BSKJI: the Yogyakarta Center for Standardization and Industrial Services for Crafts and Batik (BBSPJIKB) and the Banjarbaru Center for Standardization and Industrial Services (BSPJI), with support from the South Kalimantan Provincial Industry Office. Budi Setiawan, the head of BBSPJIKB, mentioned that the goal of this initiative is to train thirty skilled professionals in South Kalimantan who will receive certification from the National Professional Certification Agency, enabling them to tap into the potential of palm oil for their industries. "We’ve set up certification schemes for Traditional Batik Fabric Production (five competency units - SKKNI Number 104 of 2018) and Natural Fiber Non-Textile Craft Production (ten competency units according to SKKNI Numbers 82 and 141 of 2016). With these competency certifications, industry players will also be equipped to share their knowledge with the community," Budi explained. Regarding the halal industry derived from palm oil, Law Number 33 of 2014 on Halal Product Assurance mandates that all products circulating in Indonesia must have halal certification. Given the large Muslim population in Indonesia and the growing awareness of Islamic ethical values related to product consumption, the halal industry is on the rise. One category that will require halal certification is batik products, which fall under the category of functional goods. A critical point in ensuring the halal status of these products is the use of animal-based wax in the dyeing process. Therefore, replacing animal wax with plant-based wax from palm oil could be a solution to achieve halal certification.

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Tag: Batik Crafts Kemenperin Palm Oil Products