V. Indhiarto Aris Gunadi, Improving Cattle Farmers’ Welfare

KOMPAS/SUSIE BERINDRA

Valentinus Indhiarto Aris Gunadi

When he decided to become a cattle farmer, Valentinus Indhiarto Aris Gunadi, 37, did not want to employ half-measures. He does not just sell milk, but also processes it into quality products. To improve the welfare of fellow cattle farmers, he buys their cow’s milk at a higher price.

The Bambang Family Dairy (BFD) on Jl. Raya Sindanglaya, Cipanas, Cianjur, West Java, was not very crowded on Sunday afternoon (01/13/2019). Behind the store was a river, where Aris’s cattle farm was located. The farm had 30 milch cows, 14 of which were still productive.

The rain had just stopped and three farm workers wearing boots and masks were cleaning out cow dung. They were getting ready to milk the cows.

The cows are milked twice every day, in the morning and in the evening. One cow produces up to 18 liters of milk a day. The cows and their calves are kept in separate enclosures. As for the bulls, Aris usually fattens them for selling later. Aris often enters his cows into contests.

Several vocational students doing their field internships (PKL) were seen talking at the lodgings near the river at the front of the farm. Throughout the year, the BFD accepts vocational students completing their PKLs. They help out at the store, milk cows and help make processed dairy products like mozzarella cheese, pasteurized milk and yogurt, as well as personal care products like facial masks and soaps.

In addition, the BFD often welcomes school field trips to teach schoolchildren about cattle farming and processing milk. “Hundreds of schools have visited here. They learn about cattle farming, processing milk and marketing,” said Aris.

The farm has a board full of photographs from the school field trips. Aris has hung the dozens of awards and certificates he has received on the front door.

The BFD offers several different Education Farming packages for elementary schools that range from Rp 30,000 to Rp 75,000 per student.

“We work with several vocational schools as a kind of ‘teaching factory’. We teach them how to make dairy products, and after they are able to produce them, we sell the products they’ve made. This cooperation has been running three years,” said Aris.

Aris also mentors vocational students aspiring to be entrepreneurs. “I guide them until they succeed. Besides which, they have also experienced the world of work,” he said.

Dairy products

After resigning from the Indonesia Safari Park (TSI) in 2009, where he had worked for 12 years, Aris devoted himself to continuing the family’s cattle farm that had been passed down through many generations. His father had a heart condition and could not continue the cattle farm, so Aris promised to continue the family business, renaming it after his father, Bambang.

However, life as a cattle farmer was not as Aris had imagined. Every day, he sold his milk to cooperatives at low prices. “I remember clearly that in 2009, the cooperatives purchased milk for Rp 3,100 per liter,” said Aris. “From making millions as a salaried employee, I was now making only Rp 150,000 a month from selling milk, had to borrow money here and there to make ends meet.”

Once, a friend wanted to buy his milk for Rp 3,200 per liter. Although it was only a Rp 100 profit margin, for Aris, who was married by then, it was still a profit. After four months, the buyer from Cianjur could no longer distribute the milk to Cipanas, so Aris began delivering it himself.

“For me, delivering the milk to Cianjur was an opportunity to seek out other customers. I approached a restaurant. By then, the milk sold for Rp 4,400 per liter. Unfortunately, when we wanted to raise the price, the restaurant no longer wanted it,” he said.

That bitter experience did not discourage Aris. Along with his wife, Lucia “Ati” Wijiati, he sought ways to turn milk into processed foods so it would last longer. Aris began learning how to make mozzarella cheese.

“I joined a training workshop on making mozzarella cheese in Sentul. My wife also took part in the training, because she is actually more diligent. The important thing was that the milk would not go to waste for curdling,” he said.

Unfortunately, back in 2012, mozzarella cheese was not the popular food it has become today. They offered their mozzarella from Cisarua to Cipanas, but the results were not satisfying. Over time, Aris gained many customers who sold mozzarella in 250-gram packages for Rp 37,000. Aris and Ati attended many other workshops on making processed dairy products.

To obtain milk of the desired quality, Aris buys from several farmers in his village. He also established the Berkah Mukti farmers group with 13 other farmers. The group was awarded the 2016 Adhikarya Pangan Nusantara from the West Java Governor for innovation in animal husbandry.

“We often discuss, for example, how to improve the quality of cow’s milk. Improving the quality of milk depends on the ingredients in their feed, the food intake, maintenance and the [cows’] living environment. We also need to know the origins of the cow,” Aris said.

Aris buys milk from the Berkah Mukti members for Rp 6,100 to Rp 6,500 per liter. “There are farmers who, before joining my group, were reprimanded by the cooperatives for mixing milk with water. I wanted to buy the milk at a higher price, but the quality must be good. There have been no problems. The farmers only want to be respected,” he said.

Today, Aris does not only manage the farmers group, but has also been entrusted to lead the Sindangjaya Village-Owned Enterprise (BUMDes). Since he became the BUMDes director, Aris has established several innovative businesses, such as village banks and tofu factories, and is now setting up limited companies (PTs) in livestock and agriculture.

“In 2017, our village won the best village [award] in Cianjur regency. Hopefully, it will become the best in West Java,” Aris said.

Valentinus Indhiarto Aris Gunadi

Born: Tangerang, Banten, May 2, 1981

Wife: Lucia Wijiati

Child: Leonardus Hardiyo Gunadi Putra

Education:

- SD-SMA Mardi Yuana Cipanas primary-junior high school, Cianjur

Occupation:

- Director, Sindangjaya Village-Owned Enterprise

- Chairman, Berkah Mukti farmers group

- Employee, PT Taman Safari Indonesia