INFOKU, BLORA - On the sidelines of carrying out an organic rice harvest with farmers in Ngraho Village, Kedungtuban District, Saturday (21/10/2023) afternoon, the Regent of Blora, H. Arief Rohman asked Kedungtuban to be an example of organic farming.
"If possible, the plant area can be increased," he said.
The organic rice harvest is the result of the CSR program) Sustainable Environmentally Friendly Healthy Agriculture Program (PSRLB) implemented by Pertamina EP Asset 4 Field Cepu.
The Regent carried out the first harvest in the rice fields belonging to Samsuri, a resident of Ngraho Village, which is one of the organic farming demonstration plots in Kedungtuban District.
“We really appreciate and fully support efforts to develop organic farming. I also ask the village heads to set an example for their residents. "This is very good and we will support its development throughout the sub-district," said the Regent.
He stated that his party would gather all agricultural instructors from the department to be able to focus on assisting organic agriculture on a massive scale.
According to him, organic farming products are good and healthy. In terms of selling price, it is also higher than conventional agricultural products which depend on chemical fertilizers.
"We have a dream of Blora becoming an organic district, therefore, we ask the relevant agencies to continue to innovate so that it can be implemented," explained Regent Arief.
According to him, apart from being free of chemical fertilizers, the Regent continued, the results are also more abundant and taste better. With organic farming we will not depend on chemical fertilizers which are often scarce. Because farmers can make their own fertilizer using natural ingredients found around them.
It was also explained that some time ago the diaspora in Jakarta was brought this organic rice, apparently many people were interested. For this reason, his party wants to help promote it so that these farmers are enthusiastic about planting.
"We will also send the samples to the Center, so that later we can help them market our organic rice. "God willing, Blora is ready to become an organic rice barn for the world, this is our shared dream because currently many countries are looking for healthier organic rice," he said.
Also read: Blora Organic Rice Can Enter the Modern Market
Meanwhile, Ngaliman Acting Head of DP4 Blora Regency explained that the rice harvest in Blora in 2022 will cover an area of 107,000 hectares with a productivity of 6.23 tons/hectare.
"So rice production reaches 668,000 tonnes in one year. And with these production results, Blora is ranked 5th in Central Java," he explained.
Meanwhile, he continued, in 2023, even though El Nino is still ongoing, during the period from January to September, data on the harvested area reached 98,000 hectares.
"If the data for 2022 at the end of the year reached 107,000 hectares, hopefully this year the same achievement as in the previous year," he added.
Ngaliman added, in Kedungtuban itself, from January to September, there was a total rice crop of 8,823 hectares with the harvested area up to September reaching 9,934 hectares.
Samsuri, one of the organic rice farmers from Ngraho, admitted that there was an increase in crop yields from conventional farming to organic farming.
"The price of organic rice is more expensive. If conventional rice is only 12 thousand, if it is organic the price can be up to 17 thousand, productivity is no less than conventional, the rice is also delicious, fluffier," he said.
Also read: 9.53 Tons/Ha of Hybrid Corn Harvest Production Results in Kunduran
According to him, he has been switching to organic rice cultivation for 4 years, but at the start of the transition he had disagreements with his family. "When we started planting, we had different opinions, but after tasting the results, we finally agreed and continued to plant organic rice," he said.
During this long dry season, Samsuri admitted that there was a decrease in crop yields, but not that much. Apart from that, when planting organic rice, pests rarely attack, organic rice can also be good for your health. (Endah/KOM)
