Golden Agri-Resources introduces Sawit Terampil to enhance agricultural practices among farmers

Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) is collaborating with MARS and Fuji Oil to roll out the Sawit Terampil programme, an upskilling programme for more than 4,000 independent smallholders from the Leuser Ecosystem area in Aceh and North Sumatera. The programme builds on GAR's traceability efforts which has seen the company map 95 percent of its supply chain to the plantation. GAR is now looking to further improve the livelihoods of farmers identified through traceability to plantation efforts with the Sawit Terampil programme.

The Sawit Terampil programme aims to provide comprehensive support to independent smallholders through group coaching and individual support to implement good agricultural practices. The series of capacity building trainings and mentoring will teach independent smallholders to improve their cultivation methods and prepare them to register for ISPO (Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil) and RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) certifications, which in turn will help increase their incomes.

"Upskilling farmers and suppliers with knowledge is key to implementing sustainable agriculture practices. Building on the information we gained through the traceability initiatives, we are able to analyse the potential gap in productivity, yield and agricultural practices and provide targeted assistance to smallholders," said Anita Neville, Chief Sustainability & Communications Officer, Golden Agri-Resources in front of suppliers and partners in a webinar "Traceability in Sustainable Palm Oil - What's Next?"

Head of Traceable & Transparent Production Golden Agri-Resources, Wahyu Wigati Wijayanti opened the panel discussion by explaining how the company actively engages farmers in a series of trainings to improve sustainable farming practices. She shared, "The Sawit Terampil programme is currently implemented in 10 regencies in North Sumatera and Aceh and will continue until December 2023. Since the implementation of the programme, around 61 percent of participants have increased their understanding of sustainable oil palm cultivation practices compared to before joining the programme."

"In the future, we want to help farmers who are ready to obtain ISPO and RSPO certifications. We continue to welcome opportunities to collaborate with potential partners to help our farmers and the agriculture sector grow," said Wahyu.

GAR believes improving farmer livelihoods is a shared responsibility that requires contributions from all parts of the value chain - growers, processor traders, and end-use manufacturers. It has developed an ecosystem of knowledge and financing partners to help deliver Sawit Terampil including Koltiva, an agri-tech company as an implementing partner and SMARTRI (SMART Research Institute), the Company's research arm on best agronomy practices for mentorship, and MARS and Fuji Oil, who shared the same commitment with the Company.

Koltiva supports the programme with its comprehensive technology ecosystem, KoltiTrace and its agronomists and field agents on the ground to help smallholder farmers to achieve sustainability standards. "Our data-driven coaching methodology combines technology with on-ground agronomists to enhance the effectiveness of traditional capacity-building programs. By receiving tailor-made advice on good agriculture practices that are driven by data, we hope to improve smallholders' livelihood while helping preserving the environment," Chief Operating Officer, Ainu Rofiq said.

Rukaiyah Rafik, the farmer school principle of Indonesia Sustainable Oil Palm Smallholder Forum, highlighted the lack of knowledge and education are often stumbling blocks for farmers. She shared that farmers experience poor yield as a result of the variety and quality of the fruit they grow. High level of illiteracy among farmers makes it difficult for farmers to properly record their production and other farm activities. However, these challenges could be tackled with targeted assistance and transfer of knowledge with programme, such as Sawit Terampil.

GAR and its partners believe that the Sawit Terampil programme is another important step in involving suppliers in the transformation process and the company will continue to share its experiences and best practices with suppliers in order to foster a responsible and robust industry.

Contact: [email protected]/ +62818909900

===END===

About Golden Agri-Resources Ltd.
GAR is a leading palm oil plantation company in Indonesia with a total planted area of 537,720 hectares (including plasma smallholders) as of 30 June 2022. It has integrated operations focused on the technology-driven production and distribution of an extensive portfolio of palm-based products.

Founded in 1996, GAR was listed on the Singapore Exchange in 1999 and has a market capitalisation of US$2.3 billion as of 30 June 2022. Flambo International Limited, an investment company, is GAR's largest shareholder, with a 50.56 percent stake. In addition, GAR has several subsidiaries, including PT SMART Tbk, which was listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in 1992.

As an integrated agribusiness, GAR delivers an efficient end-to-end supply chain, from responsible production to global delivery. In Indonesia, its primary activities include cultivating and harvesting oil palm trees; the processing of fresh fruit bunch into crude palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel; refining CPO into value-added products such as cooking oil, margarine, shortening, biodiesel and oleo-chemicals; as well as merchandising palm products globally. GAR's products are delivered to a diversified customer base in approximately 100 countries through its global distribution network with shipping and logistics capabilities, destination marketing, on-shore refining and ex-tank operations. GAR also has complementary businesses such as soybean-based products in China, sunflower-based products in India, and sugar businesses.

For media enquiries, please contact:
[email protected]

Stay up-to-date with latest in traceability by subscribing to our monthly newsletter here.