Jakarta. Office equipment supplier Astragraphia is empowering micro and small enterprises, or MSEs, as part of its contribution to sustainable development.

The program is part of Astragraphia’s corporate social responsibility program, which embraces four pillars, namely health, education, environment, and entrepreneurship.

The entrepreneurship pillar is entering its second year of implementation, in which the company helps out Indonesia’s MSEs with its flagship training program Astragraphia’s Class for the Creative Industry (ASIK Class). Astragraphia also helps facilitate the MSEs’ needs in promotion, marketing, creative packaging or label printing.

This year, Astragraphia has teamed up with the Agriculture Ministry’s directorate for processing and marketing of livestock products, as well as Jakarta’s marine and agricultural food security agency.

The collaboration focuses on empowering dairy center Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon, according to Astragraphia’s chief of corporate secretary, legal, and corporate communications Melinda Pudjo. 

According to Melinda, the company’s support to these MSEs is not only limited to training, consultation, or packaging label printing. Astragraphia pledged to facilitate their facilities and infrastructure needs, as well as their marketing, both online and offline.

“We are aware how we need to join forces with others to bring holistic benefits to MSEs together. We hope we can implement this commitment in a sustainable manner, so Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon can become a MSE that is more self-sufficient and ready to compete in the market,” Melinda said.

Throughout 2021, Astragraphia has been regularly holding ASIK classes in partnership with multiple public and private institutions. 

Among others are the Agriculture Ministry, Central Java’s Financial Services Authority (OJK), Business & Export Development Organization, and Inaproduct. 

This year, Astragraphia has reached out to 446 MSEs in the creative industry, including fashion, culinary, and handicraft. A number of the culinary-based MSEs in this program sell livestock products such as pasteurized milk.

Agriculture Ministry official Boethdy Angkasa said that the MSEs selling domestic livestock products —particularly pasteurized milk— have a great potential to become the local market champion.

“Because their products are high quality and compete. We continue to monitor and support them with various training programs, particularly in meeting the food safety and quality standards. So the products can reach a wider [market], thus further advancing their business,” Boethdy said.

Until now, packaging has become a challenge to these MSEs. The packaging gives off the first impression to the prospective buyer. An eye-catching packaging will, of course, boost the MSEs’ sales.

“So we highly appreciate what Astragraphia is doing by educating Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon on the digital printing technology. We believe that ASIK Class can inspire and motivate [MSEs] to make innovations on their packaging, while also paying attention to the food labeling rules and regulations,” Boethdy said.

Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon sat down in Astragraphia’s ASIK Class this April, where participants learned from digital printing technology to creative applications for packaging and labeling. As well as the different types of paper that MSEs can use for packaging and labeling.

Astragraphia connected the participants to the nearby partnered print shops, so they could try printing their labels or packaging. 

Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon is among the animal husbandry processing MSE units that the Jakarta marine and agricultural food security agency is assisting.

According to the agency’s livestock and animal health chief Rismiati, the MSE processes milk from the Pondok Ranggon dairy farming area. So far, there are four dairy processors that have earned the National Food and Drug Monitoring Agency's distribution permits.

“Astragraphia shares the same vision and commitment to make MSEs competitive and level up,” Rismiati said, while thanking Astragraphia for its support for Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon.

She added, “we believe that Astragraphia, as a competent company in digital printing technology, is capable of assisting [Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon] to innovate in making their packaging more interesting.”

“We hope that this collaboration will continue so the Sentra Susu Swadaya Pondok Ranggon can become self-sufficient and reach a larger market. And hopefully in the future, it can become a dairy cow-based agroedutourism [destination] in Jakarta,” Rismiati said.

Other Pillars

Meanwhile, Astragraphia is also doubling down its commitment on its other social pillars. On education, for instance, Astragraphia has provided competence training, scholarship, curriculum alignment to vocational high schools. 

On health, Astragraphia has helped integrated health services post (posyandu) go digital, while also offering to meet its facilities needs. Last but not least is the environment pillar, in which the company campaigns for plastic use reduction and sustainable waste management.