The expansion of wheat plantation area in the Eastern Indonesia region

To cope with the rather high demand for wheat and wheat flour in the Eastern Indonesia region, especially in the Maluku and Papua provinces, the government is currently trying to expand the plantations land area from the current 5 MHA in this region to right around 6 MHA by using the available peatlands in the region. This initiative was taken as an effort to minimize the dependency on imported wheat to the minimum level, as the price of this commodity is quite right at the moment. Traditionally, wheat flour has been used by the consumers in this region to produce wheat paste. Wheat paste, or known locally in the region as papeda, has long been a staple in the household menu in this province, in which this food is used as the primary source of carbohydrate.