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Improving food production in the era of increasing challenges
Simply opening more forest for agricultural use is not ecologically sustainable. Instead, improving the effectiveness of existing agricultural land is a more plausible and sustainable goal.
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An aerial view shows farmers harvesting rice in Singosari, Malang, East Java, on Sept. 25, 2024. The Agriculture Ministry is optimistic about meeting domestic food needs by the end of 2024 through accelerated planting and optimized land use for rice and corn across Indonesia. (Antara/Muhammad M)
W
ith a head count of those living in poverty at 25.2 million, the production of food crops is of strategic importance for Indonesia. Decreases in food production would almost certainly translate to increased prices, putting more of a burden on the expenditures of these impoverished people. Unfortunately, production of major food crops has exhibited downward trends.
Corn production, for instance, decreased from 16.5 million tonnes in 2022 to 14.8 million tonnes in 2023. Likewise, during those same years, rice production declined from 31.5 million to 31.1 million tonnes. Furthermore, during January-April 2024, rice production was 17.5 percent lower than it was in the same period in 2023. Following this alarming trend, current rice prices are around 20 percent higher than in the last year.
Challenges facing food production
There are a number of factors contributing to the downward trend of food production.
First, and maybe foremost, is climate change. This results in rising temperatures which adversely affect food production, including that of rice and corn.
Second is the conversion of agricultural (especially food crop) land to nonagricultural purposes. This conversion is reflected in the decreasing number of farms from 31.7 million in 2013, to 29.4 million in 2023.
In the wake of the reduction in farm land comes the third challenging factor. From 2013-2023, the number of marginal farms— those with less than 0.5 hectares of land—rose from 14.3 million to 16.9 million, meaning 61 percent of Indonesia’s farms are marginal. Farm marginalization may lead to inefficient production processes as its acreage is far below the economic scale. Furthermore, without land consolidation it is difficult and less economical to apply mechanization and other technologies to small and fragmented farm lands.
