EFFORTS TO REJUVENATE THE PEOPLE'S COCOA IN THE EAST KOLAKA DISTRICT OF INDONESIA

Abstract

The high demand for the world market for cocoa has made the government and people of East Kolaka Regency rejuvenate the cocoa plants that have been managed so far. Plants that are very old and very low in productivity naturally have been rejuvenated into new plants. Since 2017 and 2018, 550 hectares of rejuvenation have been started by involving five Community Economic Institutions (LEM) in Aere and Lambandia Districts. This effort is expected to restore the glory of cocoa in this area with more technology-based management. The establishment of Corporate Agriculture, which has been promoted by the government, could lead this area to become a pilot project in the future. Based on the findings in this study, it can be concluded that the cocoa farmers participating in the program are very enthusiastic about following directions from the government as program implementers. Even though the operational cost assistance is very limited to the farmers participating in the program, this program has been implemented very well. This proves that the plant can grow well and at the age of three years the plant has started producing about 10 trees per tree and it is hoped that in the next five years, cocoa productivity can reach 1500-3000 kg per hectare per year. For the sustainable implementation of this program, it is hoped that there will be other programs that can direct farmers to create added value. In addition to planting, they can also handle post-harvest properly so that the quality produced matches the needs of industry and the world market. Thus, the price obtained is higher than the price received so far.

Keywords

• cocoa
• sustainability
• quality
• rejuvenation
• productivity
• value added