
InfoSAWIT, WAJO - The Ministry of Agriculture through the Directorate General of Plantations has conducted the first planting of intercropping (tumpang sisip) of dry rice in the Masseddi I Farmers Group plantation, Kampiri Village, Pammana District, Wajo Regency, South Sulawesi . This activity is part of efforts to increase rice production to support national food self-sufficiency.
The event was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, the Department of Agriculture for Food Crops, Horticulture, and Plantations of South Sulawesi Province, as well as other related parties, including the Food Industry Standardization Agency (BSIP) of South Sulawesi on Saturday (January 18, 2025). Acting Director of Plantation Product Processing in South Sulawesi, Yanuar Arianto, expressed appreciation for the participation of farmers and the support of local governments in this program.
According to Yanuar, the dry rice intercropping program utilizes plantation land that is currently unproductive or not yet yielding, such as oil palm land under two years of age, coconut, and other plantation types.
As reported by InfoSAWIT from the Directorate General of Plantations on Monday (January 20, 2025), this initiative is expected to significantly expand the area for dry rice planting, particularly in Wajo Regency. This strategy aligns with the direction of the Minister of Agriculture, Andi Amran Sulaiman, who targets an increase in national dry rice production to reach 600,000 tons of rice, equivalent to 920 thousand hectares of intercropped land.
Thus, the effort to plant dry rice in plantation areas becomes a strategic step to ensure food security in the future, optimize land use, and strengthen farmers' contributions to government programs aimed at achieving food self-sufficiency. (T2)