The cost of being a barrier to switching to electricity, the government is asked to help

the challenge of rice milling in adopting electricity

In the midst of the efforts of the government and various institutions to improve the efficiency and sustainability of the agricultural sector, there are still many rice mills in Indonesia that use diesel engines. This is a serious concern for the Indonesian Rice Milling Association and Indonesian Rice Entrepreneurs (PERPADI), which states that most of the small rice mills still depend on resources that are not environmentally friendly.

The general chairman of the PERPADI DPP, Sutarto Alimoeso, highlighted that the main obstacle in switching to electricity is the cost problem. He hopes for support from the government so that entrepreneurs can get easier and cheaper credit. “The problem is that there is usually a fee. We hope the government can provide support to get easy and cheap credit,” he said when speaking in Solo, Central Java.

Sutarto explained that PERPADI continues to coordinate with the Coordinating Ministry for Food to ensure convenience in the process of revitalizing rice mills. According to him, the transition from diesel engines to electricity is very important to support the availability of national food and reduce carbon emissions. “We always coordinate with the Coordinating Ministry for Food. The Coordinating Minister promised that it is also part of the revitalization. So rice milling must be revitalized so that there is efficiency, quality improvement for the safety of food availability nationally,” he added.

In addition, Perpadi has collaborated in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with PLN to realize low-carbon rice in Indonesia. This collaboration is expected to help the rice mill to switch to cleaner and more efficient resources.

An alarming number

Currently, there are around 169,000 rice mills in Indonesia, of which 161,000 are small rice mills that still use diesel engines. This figure shows that most rice mills have not adopted a more modern and environmentally friendly technology.

Sutarto emphasized that the transition of all rice mills to electricity will have a significant impact in reducing carbon gas emissions. “If everything turns to electricity, there will be a decrease in carbon gas,” he said.

Steps to take

To achieve this goal, collaboration between the government, business actors, and related institutions is needed. In this case, Perpadi is committed to continuing to encourage small rice mills to switch to electricity. With financial support and supporting regulations, it is hoped that this transition process can run more quickly and effectively.

In addition, it is also important to increase the awareness of entrepreneurs about the long-term benefits of switching to electricity. Although initial costs may be high, energy savings and carbon emission reductions can provide long-term benefits both economically and environmentally.

Thus, efforts to revitalize rice milling from diesel to electricity are not only the responsibility of PERPADI, but also the shared responsibility of all stakeholders in the agricultural sector. With the right steps, it is hoped that Indonesia can achieve the target of sustainability and better food security.