Those Who Tend, Those Who Give Back

Kompas/Tatang Mulyana Sinaga

Sutarya, 71, checks hanjeli (Job’s tears) plants on Sunday (25/2) at his farm in Sukajadi village, Wado, Sumedang regency, West Java. Hanjeli is one of the local foods of West Java that is being promoted widely to the public.

Awareness on the importance of food self-sufficiency is flourishing in a number of communities across the nation, while many traditional communities continue to consciously and diligently nurture their ancestral legacies.

We need to learn about food self-sufficiency from the Baduy people. It is not sophisticated agriculture technology that cultivates prosperity for the Baduy in Banten province. It is their devotion to nature and their ancestors’ teachings that give them an abundance of food.

The lush green and gold rice hung heavy with grain. They flourish at a height of 1.5 meters, even though they grow on a slope of 25 degrees. Between the paddies are papaya, banana, cacao and coconut trees. The Baduy people own this field in Kanekes village of Leuwidamar district, Lebak regency, Banten.

The trend of organic farming among city folk in the digital era seems an anachronism in Kanekes. The local farmers do not use transgenic seeds. Instead, the seeds are set aside from the previous harvest. Organic waste is used as fertilizer. Their pest control utilizes the food cycle. Pests are not eradicated; their presence contributes to the natural balance.

The natural balance of the field is maintained. The jaro, or the village head of Kanekes, Saija, said that the village owned 5,306 hectares, all of which was customary land. Around 2,150 hectares of this had been declared usable land, including for housing and agriculture. Currently, 12,000 Baduy people live in 65 hamlets on the land. “The composition has not changed since the time of our ancestors. Some of our land is for forests,” said Saija.

Nevertheless, the people have never experienced a shortage of food. For instance, Sapin, 40, a Baduy of Cicakal Muhara hamlet in Kanekes village, works on a 7,500-square-meter farm. From this land, he produces around 100 bushels of unhusked rice, which amounts to around 100 kilograms, every six months. This is enough to feed Sapin and his family.

The harvest is stored in leuit, a rice barn. Every Baduy family has a leuit of an average 3 x 2.5 x 4 meters. There are around 9,000 leuit in Kanekes, in which up to 1,500 bushels of unhusked rice can be stored at one time. Inside the leuit, unhusked rice can last more than 60 years.

“We have never suffered hunger in this village,” Saija said.

Spreading devotion

Due to the restrictions set by their customary laws, the Baduy people spread their unique methods to neighboring villages. In adhering to the local customs, Arwan, 42, a Baduy man of Kadu Ketug hamlet in Kanekes village, works land beyond customary lands.

“My parents still work on our family plot. The area of usable land cannot be increased. So, I moved out of Kanekes village,” he said.

Arwan planted padi huma (a cultivar grown on dry land instead of in rice fields) in Cisimeut village, Leuwidamar district. The 2,500-square-meter plot produces 45 bushels of unhusked rice every six months. “The harvested paddy is stored in accordance with our customs,” he said.

Farmer Nur Agis, 28, of Waringinkurung district in Serang regency, Banten, said that he was inspired by the Baduy people’s unique farming methods. Agis’ visit to Kanekes in 2016 led to him implementing the Baduy’s natural farming methods. Before, Agis freely used pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Now, he applies both in only small amounts.

“We can learn [from the Baduy] on how to implement farming techniques that do not harm the environment. Their barns are ideal for storing harvests,” said Agis, who works with 100 agriculture activists and 10 farmers groups in Banten.

The ancestral legacy of food self-sufficiency has not died out. When more people become inspired, Indonesia can still hope to attain its dream of food sovereignty.

In North Sulawesi, Sangihe Islands Regent Jabes Ezar Gaghana said that he had begun to learn from the history of local food. The regency is currently deliberating a bill on local food sources. Jabes has also established two rice-free days a week on Tuesdays and Fridays.

“During my childhood, we only ate rice once a week. We mostly ate local foods and cooked sago. There were many variants. Tubers and sago can be processed into various dishes with local fishes and vegetables. I am trying to implement this today, as we have so many unused local food sources,” Jabes said.

In East Nusa Tenggara, East Sumba Regent Gidion Mbilijora issued a regency regulation on food diversification in 2009. The movement was called “Gerbang Hilu Liwanya”.

The director of the Mitra Persada Sejahtera Sumba Foundation, Yohanis Pati Ndamung, who was involved in the movement, said that “hilu liwanya” was an acronym derived from several local foods in Sumba. “Hi”comes from hili (taro), “lu”from luwaii (cassava), “li”from litang (lesser yam), “wa”from ubi manusia (human-shaped cassava) and “nya”from ganyong (arrowroot).

However, the movement was unpopular and was gradually neglected by the local people. Yohanis said that he supported the initiative to popularize local food diversity in Sumba. “Tubers flourish in Sumba, despite the dry conditions. We have the unique tuber called wa that is highly productive here,” he said.