Jakarta, June 6, 2024 - PT Pupuk Indonesia (Persero) supports the optimization of hundreds of hectares of agricultural land owned by the Army Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad) in Neglasari Village, Ciemas District, Sukabumi Regency, West Java. This support is demonstrated through the corn and cassava harvest activities on Kostrad's food security (Hanpangan) land in the area.

Rahmad Pribadi, President Director of Pupuk Indonesia, revealed that the Pupuk Indonesia Group supports the optimization of Kostrad agricultural land through the Community Forest program implemented by PT Pupuk Kalimantan Timur (Pupuk Kaltim), a subsidiary of Pupuk Indonesia. This program, aimed at reducing carbon emissions or decarbonization, also includes training to increase agricultural productivity and farmer welfare.

The grand harvest of corn and cassava was also attended by Army Chief of Staff (Kasad) General TNI Maruli Simanjuntak and Minister of Agriculture (Mentan) Andi Amran Sulaiman, as well as Commander of Kostrad (Pangkostrad) Lieutenant General TNI Muhammad Saleh Mustafa. The harvest took place on 121.98 hectares of corn and 308.34 hectares of cassava. The delegation also inspected the corn shelling and drying processes.

"Today, I accompanied the Minister of Agriculture and the Army Chief of Staff to see the area managed by Kostrad. On this occasion, we witnessed the successful harvest of corn and cassava in the agricultural areas fostered by the Indonesian Army and Kostrad, which can serve as a tangible form of support for national food security,” explained Rahmad.

General TNI Maruli Simanjuntak, the Army Chief of Staff, hopes that this joint harvest activity can strengthen synergy between the TNI and various parties in efforts to increase national food production and community welfare. It is known that Kostrad's food security area is managed by 418 military personnel consisting of staff, supervisors, and local farmer groups (poktan).

"I specifically invited the Minister of Agriculture, Amran Sulaiman, to the food security location in Neglasari Village to jointly carry out the grand harvest of corn and cassava. The Minister highly appreciates this program and agrees to make Kostrad's food security program a pilot project for other regions in Indonesia," said General TNI Maruli Simanjuntak.

On the same occasion, Minister of Agriculture Amran Sulaiman expressed amazement at the food security program initiated by the Army Chief of Staff, which succeeded despite its remote location with limited access and difficult terrain. The success of this program is evident from the productivity of the corn and cassava harvests.

"Despite the difficult terrain and remote location, this program has successfully boosted agricultural output by utilizing unused land that was initially just scrub. Other regions should take this as an example, especially if their land is easily accessible and supported by infrastructure. The Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia fully supports what the former Kostrad Commander has implemented through the provision of agricultural equipment, seeds, and other assistance,” concluded Minister Amran.