Signing of Rubber Plantation Cooperation with Mercu BioTech Malaysia
LAMPUNG, Suara Muhammadiyah – The Regional Leadership of Muhammadiyah (PWM) in Lampung Province signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mercu Bio Tech from Malaysia on Friday, March 15, 2024, in the field of rubber tree tapping systems. This new technology aims to increase rubber sap yields by at least three times the previous output.
Attendees included the Chairman and plenary members of PWM Lampung along with auxiliary leadership elements at all levels, Malaysia’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup, Lampung Province Governor represented by Mulyadi Irsan and provincial and district/city government officials, Rectors of Muhammadiyah Universities in Lampung, and the leadership of Mercu Bio Tech Malaysia led by Dato Sri Ahmad Sukimi. Also present via Zoom was the Chief of Staff to the President of Indonesia, Moeldoko.
In his speech, the Chairman of PWM Lampung stated that this cooperation is an effort by Muhammadiyah Lampung to provide opportunities to improve the welfare of rubber farmers.
“From several discussions with Mercu, the company is ready to become a buyer of the rubber farmers’ harvests in Lampung,” said Sudarman.
Sudarman mentioned that the trials conducted on rubber plantations under the guidance of Muhammadiyah Tulang Bawang Barat yielded good results. Even with trees that had dead bark, the method developed by Mercu Bio Tech still managed to produce good quality sap.
“Therefore, we ask the government to support this cooperation. This is the beginning of increased rubber production for farmers. Muhammadiyah Lampung hopes for excellent and progressive farmers in Lampung,” said Sudarman.
Meanwhile, Mercu Group CEO Dato Sri Ahmad Sukimi noted that the old method of using tapping knives to extract rubber sap caused injuries to rubber trees, resulting in suboptimal harvests. They will introduce the MCTS (Mercu Cut Tapping System) for rubber tapping, which has been tested and implemented in Malaysia.
“The technology used is Tapping. With the MCTS method, farmers don’t need to worry about rain as we use a closed system,” said Dato Sri Ahmad Sukimi, promising to bring the rubber tapping equipment soon.
The MoU was welcomed by the Governor of Lampung, represented by Mulyadi Irsan, who stated that the doors for investment by Mercu Group are wide open.
“The downstream process will increase the added value of rubber commodities,” said Mulyadi Irsan.
In his speech, Malaysia’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Arthur Joseph Kurup, expressed his happiness about the MoU. According to him, this cooperation can benefit both Malaysia and Indonesia.
“If Malaysia progresses, Indonesia also progresses. We need to revive and enhance the ASEAN economy with this agricultural technology partnership,” said Arthur Joseph Kurup.
Separately, through a Zoom connection, Indonesia’s Chief of Staff and Chairman of HKTI, Moeldoko, hoped that this technology cooperation would run well to improve the welfare of farmers in Lampung.
“On behalf of the Indonesian Government, I thank Mercu Group and appreciate the presence of Malaysia’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Arthur Joseph Kurup, for this cooperation. Hopefully, we can build stronger cooperation, maintain our commitments, and farmers can take advantage of this opportunity by following the rubber tapping application rules properly to achieve optimal harvests,” said Moeldoko.
It is known that Mercu Bio Tech has conducted trials of this rubber tapping application in Opal Nenemo plantation, Tulang Bawang Barat (Tubaba), Lampung, using the drilling or piercing system. This system is believed not to damage the rubber tree trunk but instead extends its lifespan compared to using the traditional tapping knife.
“For a week, farmers only need to tap and harvest twice, resulting in abundant sap that can be done at any time, even during the rainy season,” explained Tubaba farmer Susilo Aris Nugroho.
This article was published on suaramuhammadiyah.id with the title: Muhammadiyah Lampung Bertekad Tingkatkan Kesejahteraan Petani,
[source](https://www.suaramuhammadiyah.id/read/muhammadiyah-lampung-bertekad-tingkatkan-kesejahteraan-petani).