Pupuk Kalimantan Timur (Pupuk Kaltim) Ltd. through the Agrosolution Program has again succeeded in increasing community agricultural productivity, especially potato commodities in Malang Regency, East Java. This program collaborates with the Gemah Ripah II Farmer Group in Ngantru Village, Ngantang District, with an average yield of 33.9 tons per hectare. This success was marked by the great harvest of the Management of Pupuk Kaltim together with the Malang Regency Government and HKTI East Java, Thursday (22/9/2022). SEVP Business Support for Pupuk Kaltim, Meizar Effendi, revealed that the Agrosolution program harvest in Ngantru Village was the second time the mentoring program was carried out by Pupuk Kaltim for local farmers, which began in 2021 with an average of 19 tons/hectare from the previous 15 tons/hectare. The success of the first phase of the program also showed an increase in agricultural productivity by 25 percent, which involved 110 farmers with a total land area of 124.5 hectares.
“The Agrosolution program was resumed this year and the results were much more significant at 33.9 tons, or twice the previous assistance. This is a very good achievement, as well as proving that farmers can be productive in optimizing their cultivated land,” said Meizar. Meizar explained, the Agrosolution program is an effort by the government and SOEs to assist farmers and increase yield productivity and farmers’ income through the use of non-subsidized agricultural inputs. This program has proven to be able to boost the productivity of agricultural products such as rice, cocoa, palm oil, sugar cane, and corn in various regions, which is also accompanied by an increase in farmer profits. "So is the harvest this time, the potential income of farmers can be calculated. If one Kilogram (Kg) of potatoes is priced at Rp. 7,700, - then Rp. 261 million is found for 33.9 tons of produce. Subtracting IDR 90 million in the capital, the farmer's profit will reach IDR 170 million. This is one of Pupuk Kaltim's efforts to encourage agricultural productivity as well as the welfare of farmers in Indonesia," said Meizar.
On that occasion, the Rainbow Agrosolution Village in Ngantru Village was also inaugurated, which was conceptualized as a pilot area for potato farming in Malang Regency. Through this idea, farmer groups from various other areas in East Java can learn to develop potato productivity, as well as join the Agrosolution program. Meizar also hopes that all relevant stakeholders will continue to provide support for this program so that the productivity of agricultural products and the welfare of farmers will increase in maintaining national food security. It was also initiated to create independent farmers so in the future they will no longer depend on subsidized fertilizers. Assistant II of the Malang Regency Government, Nurcahyo, appreciated the continued support of Pupuk Kaltim through the synergy of SOEs in the Agrosolution program, so the productivity of potato agriculture as one of the mainstay commodities of Malang Regency can achieve more significant results. He considered this program to be one of the strategic efforts to convert the use of subsidized fertilizers to non-subsidized fertilizers through intensive integrated agricultural cultivation assistance. Seeing the high productivity, Nurcahyo also appealed to potato farmers to continue to improve the achievement of commodity targets to be more leveraged, both in terms of quantity and quality. The potential for potato marketing that continues to grow can implement the agricultural processes from upstream to downstream in a sustainable manner. “Similarly related to food diversification, potatoes are one of the food ingredients that can be processed with various variations for daily needs. This is a marketing opportunity in the future so that the potential of potato farming will have an impact on the welfare of farmers,” said Nurcahyo. Head of the Gemah Ripah II Farmer’s Group Imam said the Agrosolution program provided fresh air for potato farmers in Ngantru Village to increase productivity and marketing potential. The various conveniences of agri inputs obtained are one of the factors driving the increase in crop yields from before. He hopes that this program can continue to be expanded in Ngantang District so that the potential of potatoes in Malang Regency can be further increased and have an impact on the welfare of farmers. “We hope that this program can be re-implemented so that there are appropriate agricultural operational standards to be applied sustainably from several trials. So that the results that are now obtained can be maintained, even more so. Because this kind of assistance is very much needed by farmers to encourage productivity in their respective fields," Imam hoped.
