VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Minister of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Teten Masduki while visiting a moringa leaf processing plant CV Tri Utami Jaya in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, Thursday (1/13/2022). ANTARA/HO-The Ministry of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises - 

Minister of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Teten Masduki supports the development of moringa leaf industrial products to meet the high demand from abroad, as the leaves are believed to offer extraordinary health benefits.

These agricultural products are one of the leading export commodities from West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), one of which is managed by CV Tri Utama Jaya, the first and the largest producer of moringa leaf products of international standard, and the only one in the province.

"With this type of processing, moringa leaves are increasingly favored by the global community, as the leaves offer many health benefits," Masduki noted during a working visit to the CV Tri Utami Jaya factory in Mataram, NTB, as quoted from a press statement here on Friday.

The Tri Utami Jaya factory has a production capacity of 200 tons per day, and its products have been marketed to some 13 countries, including the United States and several nations in Europe. In the near future, they will export these commodities to Madrid, Spain.

Masduki noted that moringa tea has a high protein content, even seven folds more than that of beef. Moreover, the leaves contain iron that is up to 25 times higher than spinach.

"This content is very necessary for the public, especially in overcoming stunting. In the global market, moringa is included in the category of superfood or wellness product," Masduki emphasized.

However, information on the benefits of moringa leaves in the country had yet to be optimally disseminated, so awareness regarding the benefits of these leaves should be boosted.

CV Tri Utami Jaya is currently able to clock a sales growth of around 20-30 percent from moringa. The minister assessed that the ease of moringa cultivation in various places should be tapped to make the most of the product's economic potential.

In helping to market superior-quality domestic products, the ministry collaborates with Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to join the cross-border market workshop platform and capitalizes on the Indonesian diaspora network spread across the country.

CV Tri Utami Jaya is one of the business actors supplying herbal products to several pharmacy networks of PT Kimia Farma (Persero) Tbk and various national hotels.

"Along with Smesco, we are keen to sell moringa tea products at Kimia Farma. By 2022, we are targeting to enter all Kimia Farma network pharmacies," CV Tri Utami Jaya owner Nasrin H. Muhtar stated.

Muhtar spoke of also increasing the land area for planting moringa leaves by providing an additional thousand hectares. Muhtar added that his company was developing beauty products, such as masks from moringa leaves//ANT