InfoSAWIT, JAKARTA – Chairman of Serikat Petani Kelapa sawit (SPKS) Labuhan Batu Utara (Labura), Ihsana Yanti said, Labura is the second widest palm oil plantations after District of Asahan in North Sumatera Province. Unfortunately, there is no fix and qualified data about smallholders’ plantations and their numbers in Labura.
To get the actual and real data of smallholders there, SPKS Labura did survey. It started by knowing the characteristic of independent smallholders in Village of Aek Hitetoras. It happened in 2021. From the survey, most of independent smallholders did not graduate from their schools. They who graduated from elementary school reached about 25%, graduated from junior high school reached 15%, senior high school reached 19%, and undergraduate reached 4% only.
Ihsana thought, education has something to do with capability to implement sustainable practices. “We need education by field training so much,” she said in Diskusi Awal Pertemuan Nasional SPKS Tahun 202 with the theme “Strategi mengimplementasikan Roadmap Petani Mandiri Menuju Sertifikasi ISPO”, in Bogor by the late of November 2021 that InfoSAWIT attended..
The survey also revealed, independent smallholders’ legal areas are not good enough because they mostly have Land Documents that local village published.
Those having Certificate of Ownership just reached 18%. Many smallholders do not have Certificate of Ownership because it will spend much to get it. Other legal issues, such as, SKGR and 1960 Transmigration Certificate reached 1% for each. “Many independent smallholders do not have Cultivation Document and Document of Environmental Management,” she said.
They also planted palm oil seeds only from their friends or planted fake seeds. This, of course, impacts to minimal productivity. Covid-19 also decreased their income in Village of Aek Hitetoras that led to minimal nursery.
Knowledge that relates to sustainable practices according to ISPO, Ihsana continued, of 197 independent smallholders as respondents in the village, 98% of them never know ISPO certificate. Every respondent does not get the certificate still.
If any smallholder knows about ISPO certificate, they would imagine, this will spend much because the conditions will be close and difficult to get. “They never understand about how to get ISPO certificate,” Ihsana said. (T2)
