A food crisis is unfolding in several African countries, as well as in other parts of the world, to a lesser extent. According to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, an estimated 733 million people worldwide experienced hunger in 2023. This condition indicates that global food security is facing a serious challenge. Rising food prices are considered one of the reasons many people cannot afford sufficient food.
Meanwhile, globally rising food prices are a direct consequence of rapid economic growth in several countries, resulting in increased consumption and demand for food.
On the other hand, food production has not significantly increased due to various constraints, including climate anomalies, declining land productivity and quality, as well as the reduction of agricultural land converted for other purposes.
Professor of Fisheries Science at the Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Gadjah Mada (Faperta UGM), Ustadi, stated that Indonesia has strong potential in developing surimi to help address global food crises.
Surimi, a Japanese term, refers to minced fish meat.
According to Professor Ustadi, fish is a highly perishable food, and efforts must be made to maintain its quality through processing and preservation.
Fish processing and preservation in Indonesia includes both traditional and modern products, tailored to local and export market demands.
He explained that Indonesia has considerable potential in the global surimi industry.
With its abundant marine resources, the country plays a crucial role in meeting international demand for surimi, particularly in countries with high seafood consumption, such as Japan, China, South Korea, and the United States.
“The availability of raw materials from fish catches in eastern Indonesia remains largely underutilized,” he said.
Similarly, several fish species widely distributed across Indonesia’s Fisheries Management Areas (WPP), such as Layang (Decapterus), Belanak (Moolgarda seheli), Baronang (Siganus), Kuniran (Upeneus sp.), and Kembung (Indian mackerel), are highly potential materials for surimi production.
Several cultivated freshwater fish, such as gourami, catfish, tilapia, and carp, also have potential for surimi, although their quality is not as good as that of marine fish.
“However, the quality of surimi can be improved through food processing technologies such as the addition of protease inhibitors, transglutaminase enzymes, gelling agents including agar, carrageenan, alginate, egg whites, CaCO₃, cryoprotectants such as nanochitosan, and fish combinations,” Professor Ustadi explained.
He further noted that traditional processing methods such as salting, smoking, and boiling are still widely used by coastal communities due to their simplicity and affordability.
Meanwhile, modern methods such as freezing, canning, and washing fish meat for surimi production have been developed by large-scale processing industries.
Data from the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries show that approximately 45 percent of Indonesia’s fishery products are processed using traditional methods, 40 percent using modern technologies such as freezing and canning, while 15 percent are advanced processed products, including surimi.
Therefore, the development of efficient and widespread processing and preservation technologies is crucial to support food security and increase the incomes of coastal communities.
“Surimi is one of the country’s main export commodities, with production centers in regions such as East Java, East Kalimantan, and Lampung, which have access to supplies of small pelagic and demersal fish. The high added value of modern processed products highlights the importance of improving processing technology capacity in Indonesia to strengthen the competitiveness of the national fisheries industry,” he said.
Regarding opportunities and challenges, Professor Ustadi emphasized that Indonesia, as the world’s second-largest archipelagic country, has vast fishery resources with the potential to meet the protein-rich food needs of its own people while also contributing to global needs.
Indonesia’s fish production reaches 12.94 million tons annually, more than half of which comes from capture fisheries, while the rest comes from aquaculture.
Production still has room to grow, especially from aquaculture, as only 17 percent of potential land has been utilized to date.
Approximately one-quarter of this production is sufficient to meet domestic needs, with the remainder available for trade, particularly exports.
Author: Agung Nugroho
Post-editor: Lintang Andwyna
Photographer: Firsto