Trenggalek and Tulungagung, East Java, February 3, 2022 - As a global company with expertise in health and agriculture and a vision: Health for All, Hunger for None, Bayer is helping improve the livelihoods of farmers in Trenggalek and Tulungagung, East Java, especially as they face the economic impact of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
Specifically in Trenggalek, Bayer,s initiative through the 'Better Life Farming' program in the form of technical agronomic assistance has succeeded in bringing farmers in this region to celebrate a rice harvest that reached 9.7 tons per hectare. Present at the harvest implementation with farmers in Ngadirejo Village, Pogalan District, Trenggalek: Jarot Indarto from the Ministry of National Development Planning/National Development Planning Agency (Ministry of PPN/Bappenas) and Laksmi Prasvita - Head of Communications, Public Affairs, Science and Sustainability Bayer Indonesia.
"Farmers play a significant role in ensuring domestic food availability amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, which has the potential to cause a food crisis. Seeing the significant increase in rice production, we greatly appreciate Bayer,s initiative through the 'Better Life Farming' program, which not only provides farmers with the latest agricultural products and technology they need, but also provides them with skills, access to markets, and finance, which are expected to increase Indonesian agricultural productivity, build farmer institutions, and improve the quality of life of farmers," said Jarot Indarto from the Ministry of National Development Planning/National Development Planning Agency (Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas).
In addition to reviewing the harvested land, the visit continued with a dialogue with farmers and farmers' kiosk owners who are members of the Better Life Farming Center (BLFC) in Kalianyar Hamlet, Ngunggahan Village, Bandung District, Tulungagung Regency.
The BLFC, a key component of the 'Better Life Farming' program, is a smart agricultural kiosk, also known as a "one-stop shop," that acts as a support ecosystem for farmers. It involves off-takers, agricultural insurance, financial institutions (KUR agriculture or fintech) that provide access to agri-input technology, capital, and drone service providers.
In Tulungagung, BLFC has successfully facilitated more than 10,000 farmers to gain easy access to markets (to sell their crops), counseling and mentoring, plant protection products, and new technologies such as drones - which they can apply to make production processes more efficient and increase harvests.
Jarot also revealed that the role of BLFC in Tulungagung is expected to be a model for how smart agricultural kiosks can increase crop yields and serve farmers, ultimately improving their welfare.
Launched in 2020, the 'Better Life Farming' program targets empowering 4 million farmers across Indonesia by 2030.
East Java is one of Indonesia's rice granaries. Data from the Central Statistics Agency shows East Java as the largest rice producer in 2021, with a production of 9.91 million tons of dry milled grain, equivalent to 5.69 million tons of rice. The agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sector alone contributed 12.37 percent to East Java's Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP).
Trenggalek and Tulungagung regencies produced 119,110 tons and 235,804 tons of dry milled grain, equivalent to 68,422 tons and 135,456 tons of rice, respectively, in 2021. This rice production increased by almost 10 percent compared to 2020, when Trenggalek produced 108,445 tons and Tulungagung 214,398 tons of dry milled grain, equivalent to 62,296 tons and 123,160 tons of rice.
In Trenggalek, the Better Life Farming program has successfully empowered more than 8,000 farmers spread across seven sub-districts.
Laksmi Prasvita, Head of Communications, Public Affairs, Science, and Sustainability at Bayer Indonesia, said, "Bayer understands the crucial role of farmers as the frontline providers of national food supplies. Therefore, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, we are placing increased emphasis on improving their quality of life and well-being."
"We hope that the 'Better Life Farming'program will help improve the quality of life of farmers so they can continue to contribute positively to the Indonesian agricultural industry," said Laksmi.
- Finished -
Reference:
- Analysis of Rice Data for East Java Province 2019-2021 - Central Statistics Agency of East Java Province
About Bayer
Bayer is a global company with competencies in the Life Sciences fields related to healthcare and agriculture. Bayer's products and services are designed to provide benefits and address the key challenges arising from a growing and aging global population. Bayer is committed to driving sustainable development and generating positive impact through its business. At the same time, the Bayer Group aims to increase its earnings power and create value through innovation and growth. The Bayer brand embodies trust, reliability, and quality worldwide. In fiscal 2020, Bayer employed 100,000 people with sales of IDR 725 trillion. R&D expenses were IDR 86 trillion. For more information, please visit www.bayer.com.
Media Contact:
Laksmi Prasvita
Head of Communications, Public Affairs, Science and Sustainability
PT Bayer Indonesia
Tel. +62 21 3049 1111
Email: laksmi.prasvita@bayer.com