I Innovation in Processing Rojolele Rice Bran into Borax-Free Gendar Products to Increase Income for Farmers' Households in Delanggu Village, Klaten Regency

Abstract

Delanggu Village, Klaten Regency, is well-known as one of the agriculture center areas, with Rojolele rice as its main commodity. Rojolele rice is recognized as premium rice and is considered the king among rice varieties due to its numerous advantages over other varieties. During the milling process, Rojolele produces broken rice (side product), known as "menir" comprising approximately 4-5% of the total dried paddy. Traditionally, Rojolele's menir has been utilized by the housewives of the Sanggar Rojolele farmer group to create snacks (i.e arem-arem) and porridge, which have a short shelf life, thus limiting their market only to Delanggu Village and its surrounding areas. In regards to this, the Independent Learning – Independednt Campus (MBKM) team of D3 Agribusiness of the Vocational School of Sebelas Maret University (UNS) collaborated with the Sanggar Rojolele farmer group to develop a healthy processed product using Rojolele's menir as a raw material, with an extended shelf life, in the form of borax-free crackers. The method used in the community service was the Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) or participatory understanding of the community in rural development. The activity was divided into some stages, i.e. program socialization to the wives of Sanggar Rojolele farmers, trial and practice of borax-free cracker production with the women’s farmers group of Sanggar Rojolele, market testing, and mass production of Rojolele crackers. Through this initiative, it is hoped that the society of Klaten, especially in Delanggu Village, can develop the local potential of processing Rojolele's menir into healthy borax-free crackers, adding value to the product