Description

Abstract: The market opportunity identification survey has recommended that Nanggung farmers produce and market Katuk and Kucai as a high potential VAFs. The farmers in Nanggung Generally plant vegetables only in small area with low productivity and quality, produce irregular yields, have insufficient market information, limited access to credit and selling the products individually. Market required reliability of quality, regular supply and minimum quantity to fulfill economic efficiency in transporting the vegetables to the market. To overcome the farmer’s constraints and respond to market opportunity, the farmers need to coordinate their production and marketing activities through collective marketing by developing a Nanggung agro-enterprise.

As an initial step towards that Goal, the team disseminated VAF (vegetable agroforestry) market survey finding through FGDs (focus group discussions) in Parakan Muncang, Sukaluyu and Hambaro villages of Nanggung subdistrict. The FGDs also served to identify and select farmer groups interested and motivated to develop Katuk and Kucai based enterprises. Three farmer groups have agreed to establish VAF production trial plots on their own land. About 60,000 cutting stem of Katuk and 8 sacks of Kucai’s seedling have been distributed to the farmer groups, resulting in the establishment of 5,000 m2 of farmer demonstration trials (FDTs). Eight months after establishment the FDTs showed that Katuk and Kucai can be successfully grown in agroforestry systems. The first harvesting will occur after three months of growth. Based on the experiences of existing farmers in other area, the farmer can produce 4-5 tons/ha of Katuk leaves and 7.6 tons/ha of Kucai. The farmers also have potency to produce more than 60,000 stem of Katuk every month after the fourth month. The seedling will be re-distributed to other members of farmer group as a strategy to expand Katuk cultivation, strengthening the Nanggung VAF agro-enterprise.

This poster was also presented at the Katuk Vegetable Post Harvest Training in Nanggung, IPB Campus, Bogor, Indonesia, 2 June 2008