Improving smallholders' rubber quality in Lubuk Beringin, Bungo district, Jambi province, Indonesia: an initial analysis of the financial and social benefits

B Leimona, 'Improving smallholders' rubber quality in Lubuk Beringin, Bungo district, Jambi province, Indonesia: an initial analysis of the financial and social benefits', p.29, 2010

Smallholder rubber agroforestry is an economi cally and ecologically important agroforestry system in Jambi province, Sumatra, Indonesia. It contributes to rubber production nationally and is the main source of income for farmers with land of less than 5 hectare. The rubber agroforests act as buffer zones for national parks and help maintain local biodiversity, earning them the name â??jungle rubberâ??. Farmers cultiv ating these agroforests usually have lower financial profitability compared to those cu ltivating monoculture rubber and oil palm. The main reasons for this are the older ages of the agroforests, which causes low quantities of rubber latex, and the low quality of the rubber slabs owing to unsound harvest and post- harvest procedures. In addition, the marketi ng system in Jambiâ??s villages depends on local traders, called toke , who mostly are not transparent about the real value of dry rubber content and the market price. Our hypothesis was that by providing incentives to â??jungle rubberâ?? farmers they would be willing to conserve their rubber-tree gardens, de lay or obviating their c onversion to other land uses that provide less environmental services, such as monoculture rubber and oil palm. This report describes the different procedures employed in harvesting, post-harvesting and marketing in traditional and improved production systems. It highlights changes in the ratio of revenue and costs that were borne by farm ers, through the deployment of technical innovations and collective action. Our results showed that improving rubber quality could increase farmersâ?? incomes from agroforestry systems when the dry rubber conten t (DRC) of their rubber slabs was more than 70% and they sold to agents who could transp arently advise on the DRC and fairly determine the price according to the DRC level. When th e DRC was lower than 70% and the price at minimum or average levels, selling rubber to toke was more profitable compared to selling direct to the factory. The activities that improved the rubber qualit y, which were coordinated by the World Agroforestry Centre and partners, also in creased farmersâ?? knowledge and skills. These included practical skills to enhance their liv elihoods as well as the capability to organize collective action, which, in the end was able to increase the efficiency of their smallholding rubber businesses. Moreover, neighbouring villa ges considered these activities useful and profitable, indicating a potential for expansion. Raising awareness about the ecological importance of rubber agroforestry was constantly needed in this area since there was no formal agreement that only farmers practising â??jungle rubberâ?? agroforestry could enjoy access to innovative technologies and sell direct to factories. From the perspective of an environmental fri endly rubber business, it is essential for rubber industries to recognise the environmental a nd economic value of rubber slabs coming from jungle rubber so that farmers are encouraged to maintain this ecosystem