We are deeply concerned that Indonesia’s rich natural wealth and biodiversity, entrusted to us by God, have not yet freed our nation from hunger and malnutrition. Today, Indonesia faces a triple burden of malnutrition: undernutrition, overnutrition, and micronutrient deficiencies. According to Riskesdas data (2018), the stunting rate in Indonesia stands at 30.8%, affecting approximately 7 million children, making us the third-highest country in Asia for stunting prevalence, following Timor Leste and India. This is particularly ironic for a maritime nation and the second-largest fish producer in the world, yet we still struggle to empower our citizens with adequate food access and meet the nutritional needs of our children.

True justice and sovereignty in accessible food cannot be achieved while nutritious, high-quality options remain unaffordable and limited to a privileged few. We fear that if this continues, the quality of our future leaders—our children—will decline, leading to a generation that is neither mentally healthy nor equipped with the mindset to confront challenges, all because we underestimated the grave threat of malnutrition.

Join us in the movement for Protein Independence with the Berikan Protein Initiative. Together, we can build a community of Indonesians who recognize the importance of nutrition and protein consumption in enhancing the quality of our lives. With Berikan Protein Initiative, we can bridge more protein consumption in Indonesia to combat malnutrition, hunger, and lack of protein accessibility for healthier, happier and smarter generations.