Agricom.id, BLITAR – The fertilizer need distribution for the farmers in District of Blitar, East Java runs well though the big scale social distancing or pembatasan sosial berskala besar (PSBB) does too because of the epidemic of corona virus (Covid-19). It runs well from the distributors to the grocery stores.

Head of Saprodi Permodalan Pemasaran, Food and Agriculture Agency, District of Blitar, Herman Widiono said that the subsidized fertilizer transportation from the distributors to the grocery stores and to the groups is standard. Though the pandemic of Covid-19 happens, it has no change to distribute.

He also explained that the farmers mostly end to plant and they minimally need the fertilizers. It is predicted, next months would be in massive harvest.

“We have directly done the field check. The distribution to the stores and groups ran well. The pandemic of Covid-19 happens at the same time when they do not need the fertilizer too much,” he said, Sunday (19/4/2020) as in the official statement to Agricom.id.

In this year, he continued, the allocation of subsidized fertilizer from the provincial government of East Java to Blitar reached 69.413 tons, both urea, sp-36, ZA, NPK, and the organic. If there would be increasing demands, or lack of fertilizers, he would re-propose to the central government.

“The highest retail price of the subsidized fertilizer for urea is Rp 1.800 per kilogram, SP-36 is Rp 2 thousand per kilogram, ZA is Rp 1.400 per kilogram, NPK is Rp 2.300 per kilogram, and the organic is Rp 500 per kilogram,” he mentioned

Minister of Agriculture, Syahrul Yasin Limpo (SYL) guaranteed that PSBB would not be the issue to distribute the non-subsidized or subsidized fertilizers to the farmers. They have been in planting season which would run since April to September 2020.

"The fertilizer distribution to the farmers would have no issue because fertilizer is as the important material and the distribution is not regulated in the PSBB. Fertilizer is the strategic one which plays important role to determine the development nationally,” SYL said.

He also encouraged the producers joining in Holding BUMN Pupuk to coordinate with the related instances immediately both in the province and district levels, including the National Disaster Management Agency, the army, and the police.

“The goal is about to get the good access to transport the fertilizer from the factories to the farmers based on 6R principles, they are, right on time, numbers, price, place, kinds, and quality. The farmers should have got certainty and the food productivity would have no issue nationally,” he said.

Meanwhile General Director of Agriculture Infrastructure, Ministry of Agriculture, Sarwo Edhy said that in the planting season, PT Pupuk Indonesia (Persero) has prepared the stocks of subsidized fertilizers reaching up to 1.447.616 tons, which consist of, 745.337 tons urea, 374.232 tons NPK, 115.992 tons,SP-36, 137.390 ZA, and 74.725 tons organic one.

The stocks are prepared as the anticipation heading to the planting season in this year. The stocks in the III and IV line are enough for the next three months.

He also mentioned that the subsidized fertilizers are allocated based on the Elektronik Rencana Definitif Kebutuhan Kelompok (e-RDKK).

"The numbers are about to fulfill the farmers’ needs and could be seen in e-RDKK" Sarwo Edhy said.

He also mentioned that based on the Regulation of Minister of Agriculture No. 10 / 2020, the subsidized fertilizer are for the farmers who join the groups. The groups should make e-RDKK and for the farmers who do agriculture business in food plantation sub-sector, plantation, horticulture within the largest areas reaching 2 (two) hectares in every planting season. While the farmers (breeders) who do fish breeding, the largest areas would be 1 hectare in each planting season.

“We also remind that the allocation should be supervised so that it is right on target, and more efficient. The distribution should be supported by the accurate data based on ID numbers,” he said. (A2)