Marketing Group Improves Farmers’ Lives

Lukas (33), a farmer from East Flores, Nusa Tenggara Timur province, Indonesia, has enjoyed much better income since joining the marketing program implemented by Wahana Visi Indonesia East Flores office three years ago. The father of four children decided to join as a member of the Kelore Laka farmers’ association and has received significant support in the marketing of his candlenut produces since then.

Lukas could lead much better lives and had much better opportunity to support their children to have much better health and to be able to continue schooling to the highest level possible.

The Kelore Laka managed the marketing of main produces of the local farmers, such as cashew nut, cacao, candlenut, copra and tamarine. Besides, the group also managed savings and lending for the members. The group held weekly auction to sell their members’ crops. Interested buyers came to bid for the crops they were interested to buy. This auction has resulted in much better sales prices for the farmers.

As the farmers’ group always updated themselves with the latest trend of market prices, they could set appropriate prices for the crops they auctioned. In average they could make their members enjoyed some Rp 1,000 and Rp 1,500 (some USD 9.13) higher prices for every kilogram of their produces than when they individually sold the crops directly to the buyers in the past.

To avoid complications in payment, the buyers were also obligated to directly pay the crops they purchased at the auction before they took the goods away. The new marketing system also freed the farmers from their dependency to the buyers, who also often acted as loan-sharks that gave them the opportunity to buy farmers’ crops at very low prices in the past.

Wahana Visi, a special partner of global humanitarian organization World Vision, encouraged Kelore Laka group -- who has five farmer’s groups as members -- to adopt fair practices and to sell crops with better quality to get better income. So far, Kelore Laka has been able to carry its tasks very well.

“This joint marketing program must continue,” Lukas said, extending his full support for the program. “The joint marketing can help us increase our income. In the past, the prices were not really fair.”

Through the fairer business practices, Wahana Visi expected that farmers like Lukas could lead much better lives and had much better opportunity to support their children to have much better health and to be able to continue schooling to the highest level possible.

Written by Chrisman Siregar, Staff Wahana Visi Indonesia at East Flores operational office | Edited by Hendro Suwito, Senior Editor World Vision Indonesia