Strategic Short Note: Reviving Local Resources for Healthier Foods in Indonesia

Indonesia has been categorized as a mega biodiversity country in the world, comprising with more than 16,000 islands, providing a great variety of edible food sources. There are at least 77 types of carbohydrate sources, 26 legumes, 389 fruits, 228 vegetables, and 110 types of spices and seasonings that can be found in Indonesia (MAFSA, 2020). Indonesian local fruits include 266 indigenous fruits and 62 species of them are cultivated (Uji, 2007). There are 208 native cultivars of mango (Fitmawati & Purwoko, 2010), and 200 local cultivars of banana (Musaceae) (Poerba et al., 2016), and many other fruits with a wide range of colors indicating different composition of nutrients, especially carotenoids, one of the most essential pigments responsible for the color of fruits (Ranganath et al., 2018).