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Jakarta Post

Local corn on the brink of extinction

Four local varieties of corn in Gorontalo, which were once native to the province, are facing extinction as they are seldom grown by local farmers, who prefer to cultivate hybrid corn

Syamsul Huda M. Suhari (The Jakarta Post)
Gorontalo
Mon, April 14, 2014

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Local corn on the brink of extinction

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our local varieties of corn in Gorontalo, which were once native to the province, are facing extinction as they are seldom grown by local farmers, who prefer to cultivate hybrid corn.

The four varieties are known by their local names, Momala, Motorokiki, Bonia/Badia and Pulut (Binthe Pulo).

'€œThese corn varieties are rarely grown by local farmers due to their low harvesting volume compared to hybrid corn,'€ Asriani, head of the dissemination and information division of the Gorontalo Corn Information Center and Food Security Agency (BKPPIJ), told The Jakarta Post.

Motorokiki is the only one of the four types of local corn whose contents and harvest potential have been studied.

The variety has a number of superior qualities, in that it is pest and disease resistant, has tolerance against drought conditions, grows well without chemical fertilizers and can thrive in less fertile soil on both low and high plains.

Based on research by the Gorontalo BKPPIJ, Motorokiki corn, which has small and glossy orange seeds, originated from Dutohe village in Kabila district, Bone Bolango regency, and has been cultivated since the 1930s.

'€œLocals usually grind and mix the Motorokiki corn with rice to form a mixture called Baalo Binthe. Local people believe it can boost energy,'€ Asriani said.

Based on research by the center, a single Motorokiki corn cob contains 360.07 percent of energy, 69.71 percent of protein and 3.87 percent of fat. The number of seeds on a cob ranges between 245 and 263, and there are between 10 and 12 rows of seeds.

With a growing period of between 70 and 80 days, the corn variety, which is widely known to withstand bulai and karat pests, has a potential harvest volume of 3 tons per hectare.

However, the farming area for this type of corn has declined over the years. Based on the most recent data as of 2007, the total land area in Gorontalo that still cultivated Motorokiki corn was 1,548.30 hectares, compared to 2,258.78 hectares in 2003.

'€œMoreover, the four local varieties were only grown in certain spots in a number of outlying areas, such as Mohiolo village, Gorontalo regency, and Wonosari village, Boalemo regency. They were mostly eaten by farming families,'€ said the head of the BKPPIJ'€™s food security subdivision, Yakobus N. Boko.

Now, however, the four varieties are only grown at a limited volume in the Gorontalo BKPPIJ model area, which spans around a hectare.

'€œOur budget is limited to reproducing local seedlings, but at least there are already efforts to cultivate them,'€ he added.

He admitted that the local corn varieties had been overshadowed by the presence of hybrid corn together with the so-called agropolitan program, which was launched during former Gorontalo governor Fadel Muhammad'€™s two-term tenure between 2001 and 2012.

As of now, only two local corn varieties have been registered with the Plant Variety Protection Center, namely the Motorokiki, which was registered in 2008 and Pulut in 2013.

Now, under the leadership of Governor Rusli Habibie, Gorontalo'€™s prestige as an agropolitan province has diminished. The production target of a million tons of corn, which was set by Fadel 13 years ago, has never been attained.

Gorontalo Central Statistics Agency (BPS) head Ihsanurijal disclosed that between January and February last year and this year, Gorontalo had not exported corn to other regions in Indonesia or overseas.

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