Sustainable Agriculture in West Kalimantan: Assessing Alternative Commodities and Testing Solutions

This project is implemented by PT Kopernik on behalf of our client who funded this project.

We are working with the government of Sintang district, Lingkar Temu Kabupaten Lestari and Credit Union Keling Kumang to find alternative commodities beyond rubber and palm oil and test promising solutions that support livelihoods and conserve biodiversity in the area. 

Project Type

  • Last Mile Consulting

THE PROBLEM

For many years, Sintang’s economy has relied on the rubber and palm oil industry. As one of the founding members of Lingkar Temu Kabupaten Lestari, the Government of Sintang district seeks a sustainability framework to diversify its economic development. However, there is currently limited knowledge and implementation of good agricultural practices especially related to alternative commodities choices suitable for the area.

THE SOLUTION

In a move towards sustainable agriculture development, the Government of Sintang district is exploring the possibility of cultivating commodities beyond rubber and palm oil in order to both support the people’s livelihood and reinforce polyculture cultivation to protect the area’s biodiversity. 

To support this objective, Kopernik is conducting two activities:
a comprehensive value chain research study — pre-harvest, harvest, and post-harvest — on two potential commodities,cacao and Sengkubak leaves, identifying the challenges and potential; and an experiment on cacao solar drying practices to develop simple solution in efficient post harvest processing which can help farmers in improving cacao quality. 

Cacao is an introduced crop in Sintang with approximately 300 farmers involved and a plantation area of 125 hectares. Meanwhile, Sengkubak is a local plant of Sintang district which is commonly used as flavour enhancer in cooking. However, the plant is not yet cultivated at a larger scale.

THE EXPECTED IMPACT

We expect that findings from the value chain research study can support government officials in devising effective and appropriate policies to support the development of cacao and sengkubak value chain in Sintang district. Through the testing of solar dryer, we expect to increase the number of farmers who use the fermentation box and solar dryer in processing cacao beans. In the long term, this is expected to increase market acceptance of cacao produced by Sintang farmers.

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This project is implemented by PT Kopernik on behalf of our client who funded this project.