Warmenhuizen, The Netherlands
February 24, 2016
Before they started growing carrots together for supermarkets in Makassar, the growers in Enkerang (southern Sulawesi, Indonesia) were growers just like many others in the country: growing just one hectare or less for coffee plants and some vegetables like cabbage and tomatoes.
‘Thanks to group training, ten growers have now teamed up, supplying a trader with packaged carrots’, says Huib Hengsdijk, research coordinator for the Dutch-Indonesian research programme vegIMPACT. ‘The best quality is sent to the supermarkets in Makassar, the slightly lower quality to local markets’.
Collaboration
Six Dutch seed companies and their Indonesian partners, including Ivegri (Vegetable Research Institute) and Fresh Dynamics Asia, help Indonesian farmers grow crops and market the vegetables. The partnership aims to train about ten thousand vegetable growers by 2018 in a similar way as the carrot growers of Enkerang.
The seeds for the Enkerang growers’ carrots were sourced from Bejo. ‘We like to get up close and personal with our customers’, explains Luc Driessen, area business manager in Singapore. ‘In consultation with the customer, we recommend hybrid varieties specifically bred for the climate with the required product properties like resistance, quality, homogeneity and yield. Sharing knowledge about crops is a key factor in these projects.’
In Indonesia, Bejo has partnered with an agricultural distributor. Their 150 employees advise the growers, also those in Enkerang, about seeds and crops.
Joint planting scheme
Based on vegIMPACT, the Enkerang farmers have now entered into a contract with a buyer. They receive a guaranteed price for their carrots, as long as they supply the agreed quantity. No insects may be found on the carrots and the pesticide residue levels must comply with Indonesian standards.
Preparing the joint planting scheme proved a crucial factor in this process. One week, grower A seeds in the carrots and grower B the week after. This schedule guarantees a continuous supply to the supermarkets. ‘A single grower can’t supply enough, so the farmers need to work together’, says Mr Driessen. Ten growers working together in Enkerang is a good start, he says. ‘We’re in it for the long haul.’
Bejo supports initiatives promoting collaboration in the chain based on a long-term vision, like vegIMPACT. ‘We’re happy to support this programme’.
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