Employees arrange merchandise at Tomira (a store owned by the people) on Jalan Wates, Kulon Progo regency, Yogyakarta, on March 29. The modern retail store is managed by a cooperative and presents a display room for various local products in Kulon Progo.
Macing, growol sticks and wader fish chips are names of snacks. At Tomira, which means “store belonging to the people in Sentolo district, Kulon Progo regency, Yogyakarta,” these treats are quite popular.
Traditional snacks made by local farmers and business people look exclusive. The food is packaged impressively and put in racks located at the front of the store, positioned near similar snacks from Kulon Progo.
Macing chips are made from tubers, while growol is food from steamed and pounded cassava. There are eight other Tomiras in Kulon Progo. Tomira was initially a modern shop network, which was later acquired by a number of cooperatives.
Shredded meat, one of the products of Titik Kusnawati, 45, has been displayed in Tomiras for two years. Titik thanked the ease of requirements for displaying the products in the store. "Usually, in order to be able to display products, I have to know friends or close relatives of the shop owners," said Titik, who has produced traditional products for four years.
She used to try to sell her products at modern stores where she did not have personal connections. However, her products were turned down because the packaging and products were considered below the standard. Now, she relies on word of mouth promotion.
Tomiras have become a solution because the stores have easier requirements for food producers. Products can be displayed as long as the products are neatly packaged, have expiration dates and have permits from the homemade food industry.
Tomira is part of a program in Kulon Progo sales and purchases introduced by Kolon Regent Hasto Wardoyo in the 2011 to 2016 period, who has been reelected for the 2017 to 2022 period. The program invites the public in Kulon Progo to dominate the local market and meet local demand independently with local products.
Through such a spirit, modern shop networks are increasingly pursued through cooperatives controlled by local communities. Their names are changed to Tomira.
Since 2014, out of 20 stores in modern networks, nine became Tomira shops, two were closed, three are privately owned and six are in the process of becoming Tomira shops.
Efforts to defend citizens of Kulon Progo are also carried out through other policies, such as requiring civil servants to buy 10 kilograms of rice from farmers per month. The rice is packaged with the label of civil servants. The price is Rp 7,300 per kilogram.
Regency-owned water company PDAM is also encouraged to produce mineral water with the brand of AirKu. Now AirKu accounts for 20 percent of the market in Kulon Progo and is served to guests in government offices.
Growing creativity
The provision of room for local products receives positive responses and invites Kulon Progo people to get involved.
Sri, a producer of growol, said the provision of room in Tomiras has encouraged her to be enthusiastic to create new products. After producing growol sticks, she plans to products growol-based snacks like milk pies. Now, Sri has performed experiments to make pastries, like nastar and kastengel made of growol.
The rising interest to be creative also happens at the batik center in Ngentakrejo village, Lendah district. Chairman of Batik Citra Mendiri Cooperative, Surasa, said last year, the number of new batik makers in Ngentakrejo village reached 15 people, a rise from only four to five people previously. "Some of the batik makers are youngsters, including new graduates of vocational schools," he said.
The rising interest to produce batik, he said, is one of the effects of the government policies to require all civil servants and students to wear uniforms with geblek renteng pattern. The creative ideas of SMEs continue to grow. The number of SMEs has continued to increase as well. In 2013, there were only 33,391 SMEs in the regency; in 2016 it rose to 34,029 SMEs.
Kulon Progo Regent Hasto Wardoyo said that sales and purchases programs were launched to educate and encourage self-reliance of the people to meet daily needs from local products.
Defending people means buying their products. In Kulon Progo, the ideology to defend and take sides with the people has been quite successful.
