West Sulawesi To Launch Development Of Non Rice Food

Mamuju, W Sulawesi, March 15 (Antara)- The Provincial administration of West Sulawesi said it will launch a program to develop non rice food to reduce dependence on the rice staple food. The program will be carried out this year by growing non rice food crops like tubers and banana, West Sulawesi Governor Anwar Adnan Saleh said here on Friday. The provincial agriculture office and the Food Security Agency will work together to carry out the program, to boost production of non rice food, Anwar said. "The provincial administration is set to carry out the program. It is in line with the government program to reduce rice consumption," he said. He pledged support from the government by providing appropriate technology , fertilizer and seeds for the farmers. The program will reduce 2 percent dependence on rice as food staple and at the same time provide greater opportunities for households to develop home industries, he said. The governor has expressed opposition to the policy of importing rice from abroad by the central government. "I don`t agree with the policy of the central government in importing rice to meet domestic requirement," he said. Imports would hurt the farmers and result in local commodities losing their foothold in the market, he added. He said the instead of importing rice, the government should encourage the farmers to boost rice production. He said West Sulawesi is set to boost its rice production to reach one million tons a year by setting aside large budget for the development of the farm sector. He said West Sulawesi has 67,000 hectares of rice fields with a production rate of 380,000 tons per year. Production would be increased through intensification program as well as expansion of farm lands. The provincial administration will open around 28,000 hectares of new rice fields until 2014, he said. Irrigation systems would be improved and expanded in capacity in order to meet the target of producing 1 million tons of rice a year, he said.