BATANG. The condition of the tea plantations owned by smallholders in Indonesia is very apprehensive. Endang Sopari, Chair of the Indonesian Tea Farmers Association (Aptehindo) said that every year, area of smallholders plantation decreases by 3,000 hectares due to land conversion into villas and other buildings. Last year, the national plantation area was still around 60,000 ha. However, now the number is only 57,000 ha. “Many have turned into villas,” said Endang to KONTAN, in Batang, Central Java, Thursday (31/3).
This condition is unfortunate considering that the smallholders tea plantations are the largest compared to government and private plantations. Of the total area of tea plantation nationally which is around 120,000 ha, around 60% is smallholders plantation. Meanwhile, as much as 25% is state-owned, and the rest is private.
The land conversion mostly occurs in West Java. Two other areas which are also major area of smallholders tea, namely Central Java and West Sumatra have also changed functions but the numbers are not yet significant. Worse, so far West Java has the largest smallholders plantation, around 40,000 or 70% of the total smallholders plantation. The problem is, land conversion in West Java is very massive, especially in the Puncak Bogor, Cianjur and West Bandung areas. “Just look there are many villas built on tea plantations,” complained Endang.
There are two factors causing land conversion. First, the capital. Farmers usually have a small farm area of only 0.5-3 ha. This is exacerbated by its productivity which is only 800 kg/ha/year, which ideally it can reach 2 tons/ha/year. This condition makes farmers do not get sufficient profit from growing tea.
On the other hand, it is difficult for farmers to obtain loans for land expansion and production intensification. Banks set requirements that are difficult for farmers to fulfill, such as the need for collateral. This is clearly difficult considering the assets owned by farmers are not many. “We will almost certainly be impossible to get a loan from the bank,” explained Endang.
The second problem is the minimal price. Endang said that the price of dry tea at the farm level is only around Rp. 1,500-Rp. 1,700/kg. In Central Java, the price is only IDR 1,250/kg. During the main harvest, namely November-January, the price can drop to IDR 800/kg. As a result, farmers feel they do not get a fair profit from growing tea. “When someone bids their land at a hefty price, they let go,” explained Endang.
Endang hopes there will be a breakthrough from the government to overcome this. Farmers hope the government can lobby banks to soften the terms of lending. If possible, farmers ask for a soft loan with only 6% interest. The farmers also asked the government to fix the governance of tea industry, so that the price of smallholders tea could increase.
Tegoeh WHR, Head of the Central Java Plantation Service, denied the land conversion that occurs in tea plantations. In Central Java, the area of smallholders tea areas has actually increased by 1,000 ha per year. In 2009, the area of tea plantations in Central Java was around 29,000 ha. Last year the number increased to 30,000 ha. Of that amount, the smallholders land area is around 60%.
The problem faced by smallholder plantations is not land conversion, but low productivity. Ideally, 1 ha of land can produce 2 tons/year. However, smallholder plantations are only around 800 kg/ha/year. “This is what we will improve so that we can produce more and the farmers can be more prosperous,” said Tegoeh after the launching of the Lestari Tea Certification at PT. Pagilaran, Batang District.
For information only, Central Java usually produces 3 types of tea namely black tea, green tea and sweet tea. These three teas have become export commodities to the United States (US), the Middle East and Japan.
