Monoculture in Indonesia: Impact and Alternatives:
Case Study on Potato Cropping in the Uplands of North Sumatra Province

Introduction

Indonesia is the largest archipelago in the world. It consists of 13,677 islands, of which approximately 6,000 are inhabited. The people consist of hundreds of ethnic groups, languages and cultures. About 80% of Indonesia’s 180 million people live in rural areas and agriculture employs approximately two-thirds of the nation’s work force.

Formerly, the farmers in the rural areas cultivated their crops using traditional methods of farming, but since the Dutch colonization in the 17t century ‘modern’ agricultural methods have been increasing, especially in the plantations for export; also, vegetables have been introduced in the uplands as well, replacing many traditional crops.

Since the advent of Indonesian independence in the 1960s, the Indonesian people and government have concentrated more on political issues of stabilization than on cultural or economic development problems, and during this period food shortages became a problem and many people suffered from hunger all over the country. In 1967 the Indonesian New Order Government began a process of long term development. One of the development strategies was the implementation of Green Revolution policies as promoted by the World Bank and FAO. Its aim was to become self-sufficient in food supply for Indonesia, with the assistance of modern technology through foreign aid, and in 1986 the Indonesian government declared the country to be self sufficient in food supplies. However, in the uplands of Indonesia, many impacts were felt from the new farming methods, which utilized High Yield Variety seeds, chemical fertilizers and pesticides, mechanical agricultural tools, and credit.

2. Impact of Green Revolution on Vegetable Growers in the Uplands of North Sumatra Province

North Sumatra Province is located in the western part of Indonesia, close to Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand (about 30 minutes by air to Malaysia and Singapore, and 3 hours to Thailand). Agriculture is varied, with some uplands and some hilly, wet areas. The general conditions are:

• lowland to medium areas (0-600 metres above sea level), where rice and plantations of palm oil, chocolate and rubber are the main crops; and
• upland areas (over 600 metres above sea level), where vegetables are the dominant crop.

The Districts of Simalungun and Karo are the main vegetable growing areas in North Sumatra Province, and are the leading areas for export of vegetables to Malaysia, Singapore and some other countries. They have been exporting to Malaysia since before the Green Revolution. One the major vegetable commodities produced here is potatoes, which were first grown in the North Sumatra uplands in 1811.

With the coming of the Green Revolution to North Sumatra, traders began to spread the new ideas, especially HYV seeds, pesticides, chemical fertilizers, credit and tractors. Some of the new potato varieties introduced during this period were Patrones, Granola, Gloria , Grata and Herta. So far, Granola is the main variety cultivated by the farmers. The imported seed is purchased at the local market for Rp. 140,000-150,000 ($US 67-70) per 30 kg. This is a very high price for the local farmers, so often they propagate the seed themselves and use it several times this way.

Due to intensive farming practices and frequently contaminated self-propogated seed, the farmers have been increasingly forced to turn to high external input use to sustain their crops, especially chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Economic threshold analyses of the potato crop is about 50% to buy chemical inputs for the monoculture farming of potatoes. Export quality is still based on visual inspection and standards.

Following the introduction of Green Revolution technologies, a number of impacts were felt.

A. Positive impacts:

1. More product output for sale;
2. Increase in foreign exchange and national income;
3. Increase in work ethic among the farmers;
4. Steady income resource for growers;
5. New work opportunity for non-potato growers.

1. Dependence on chemical fertilizers and pesticides -
   • growers believe that chemical input is necessary to maximize yield and quality;
   • traders become main source of information on chemical inputs; and
   • although farmers initially resisted chemical use, they do not anymore, and they must use credit to purchase their supplies
2. Chemical prices always increase, but the price received for potatoes and other vegetables always fluctuates, making the growing of vegetables a speculative business.
3. Use of chemical orientation is increasing.
4. Forests are being cut to provide more acreage for growing vegetables, which provides more benefits for the farmers than rice cultivation.
5. Holistic values among the farmers are being lost, such as mutual exchange of labor for cultivating land. Farmers now simply compete with each other.
6. Farmer’s bargaining rights and access to information are weak.
7. Farmers become money-oriented, and concern for the environment is lost.
8. Direct and indirect effects of pesticides on human and environmental health, animal health, and sustainablility are serious, but not of concern to growers.

1. Participative assistance through field schools, farmer’s forums, exchange visits;
2. Develop and seek technical alternatives through collaboration with farmers and among farmers, NGOs and researchers, to practice together new methods in the field such as reduced pesticide and chemical fertilizer use, selection of healthier seeds through rapid, in-vitro multiplication, selection and storage. So far, the reduction of external input for the potato crop has been 30-40%.
3. Farmers organizing.
4. Set up a market information network, and pioneer low and pesticide free marketing (still in developmental stages).

1. Ability to face the era of global free trade is low, because of remaining pesticide residues and lack of standard quality testing.
2. Changeover period from high pesticide use to low requires a long time.
3. There are few NGOs to work with the farmers and assist them with new ideas and methods as they change over.