Mr. Sarwano’s Story
Although having inherited cocoa trees from his parents two decades ago, Sarwono never thought to focus his farming efforts on cocoa. Instead, he grew crops such as pepper, coffee and durian. Compared to other crops, the volatile prices of cocoa per kilogram was never an attractive option.
In 2016, his brother introduced Krakakoa to the farmers association in Pesisir Barat, where Sarwono lives. The farmers learned that Krakakoa would buy high quality, organic cocoa beans at a premium price, ranging from IDR55,000 to IDR 60,000 per kg. Krakakoa also provided training and education programs for the farmers, covering topics such as pruning, disease and pest control, and sustainable cocoa production.
After gaining knowledge and convinced by Krakakoa’s model, Sarwono has been working to produce cocoa for Krakakoa ever since. He has increased his income by 15- 20% and provides for his family’s daily needs and children’s education. Fixed premium prices and the newly implemented pilot project called Agroforestry Management Unit (AMU) has made Sarwano grateful and especially hopeful for the future.
AMU is a one stop shop for farmers to buy inputs, build skills at a training centre, and have agroforestry questions answered. Previously, farmers were only trained in organic cacao bean harvesting. With AMU, farmers are no longer reliant on one crop and can benefit from biodiversity and better risk management. Sarwono sees AMU as a place where farmers can find solutions to problems they face in the farms