REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Agriculture Ministry has targeted raising some 1,000 "Gatotkaca" Belgian Blue cattle, the minister said when signing an agreement with the local governments and financial services agencies, Thursday.

The minister, Andi Amran Sulaiman, expressed excitement over witnessing the birth of the special cattle on Dec 10, explaining that the adult Belgian Blue could weigh up to two tons.

"We are expecting to distribute 1,000 Belgian Blue cattle to Jakarta by the end of our tenure (in 2019)," Sulaiman remarked.

The minister further noted that two Belgian Blue calves, named Gatotkaca and Srikandi, had been raised at the Livestock Embryo Center in Cipelang, Bogor.

He said Srikandi was the first Belgian Blue to be born in the tropical country, as the species was originally raised by breeders in Belgium.

The ministry has allocated Rp100 billion from the 2018 budget for purchasing the cattle's frozen semen.

"In the European market, the frozen sperm is worth Rp15 million per drop, but in this case, we purchased the embryo for Rp100 billion because the dealer promised us the adult Belgian Blue would weigh 1.9 to two tons," the minister stated.

Sulaiman claimed the Agriculture Ministry is seeking to introduce a new kind of cattle in Indonesia.

The Belgian Blue, he added, would be mated with local cattle to raise the number and productivity of the livestock in the country.

Due to the high demand for the special cattle in Indonesia, the Belgian Blue Association in Belgium has increased the distribution of the animal's embryos and frozen semen worldwide.

There are three kinds of Belgian Blue cattle, determined by their "pie black," all white, and "pie blue" color patterns.

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