Agricom.id, JAKARTA – The corona virus (Covid-19) pandemic, as a matter of fact, does not decrease the lemongrass oil demands both in the domestic and abroad. This showed that the agriculture sector could survive and even as the sector to secure the economy when being down globally because of Covid-19.

Minister of Agriculture, Syahrul Yasin Limpo told that the agriculture could be the security when the economy gets decreasing. He thought that the Covid-19 pandemic makes many people lost their work and raise the concern about food stocks.

“Covid-19 makes the economy bad. Many people lost their jobs. The medicine is in front of our eyes, that is, farming in the yard,” he said when do work visit in Village of Ciberes, Sub district of Patokbeusi Subang, last June, as in the official statement to Agricom.id.

He continued that the agriculture should be boosted to face every challenge ahead. Doing the agriculture has no loss. We have the areas to plant.

Ministry of Agriculture through General Directorate of Plantation is preparing Subang as the center to develop lemongrass. General Director of Plantation, Kasdi Subagyono told that lemongrass has many positive advantages and chances of promising business. His side plans to allocate the budget to develop lemongrass in di District of Subang.

When seeing the location to develop lemongrass  in District of Subang in June 2020, Director of Seasonal Plants and Spices, Hendratmojo Bagus Hudoro said that District of Subang should be one potential location for it is supported by the good agro-climate to develop lemongrass.

In the chance, the grand design to develop lemongrass was approved and would be arranged by involving the general directorate of plantation, provincial and regional plantation agencies in West Java Province.

“The grand design is essential to develop the agricultural commodity, namely, lemongrass so it has purpose and plans in the future and the needs in the domestic and abroad would be enough,” he said.

Regent of Subang, Ruhimat did welcome the plans of General Directorate of Plantation, Ministry of Agriculture to develop lemongrass in his region. “The first thing is that we do hope that District of Subang could be the pilot project to develop lemongrass,” he said.

He also thought that the potential areas to develop it could cover 9.500 hectares (ha), and consist of 2.000 ha (former areas of PT. Perkebunan Nusantara), 1.500 ha (former areas of PT. Raja Nusantara Indonesia (RNI, Persero), and 6.000 ha (belonging to PT. Perhutani).

Based on the field data, lemongrass developing in District of Subang in 2020 covers 190 ha within the total production reaching 795 tons and the average production reaching 4,18 tons per ha.

"Lemongrass is developed in Sub district of Serang Panjang, Sub district of Jalan Cagak dan Sub district of Cijambe. It is a promising business,” Asep, Chairman of Gapoktan Agro Atsiri Rekatama, said.

He also mentioned that for all these years, the farmers could get Rp 30-40 million per ha per year by selling the wet leaves by assuming that the leaves selling is Rp 500/Kg, the production reaching 2 kg/clumps, the numbers of population reaching 10.000 clumps/ha. The harvest is three times in a year in the first year and four times in the second year and producing 60-80 tons of leaves per ha in every year.

“Not only that, to increase the additional values of lemongrass, some farmers in District of Subang tried to produce ready products from lemongrass, such as, aroma therapy, carbolic, fuel saver and others,” he said.

Besides lemongrass, the farmers also processed essential oil from clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon. These are the supports to the government’s program to make downstream products to increase the additional values and competitiveness. (A2)