Palm Oil FFB Looting Occurs, Farmers Are Worried About Revenue Down

Oil palm illustration (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Palm oil farmers often face concerns about the rampant theft of fresh fruit or fruit bunches (FFB). This difficulty arises among oil palm farmers in Seruyan and Kotawaringin Timur (Kotim), Central Kalimantan.

Due to these concerns, farmers are worried that it will have an impact on reducing their income.

Oil palm farmers from East Kotim, JMT Pandiangan, said that the stolen palm FFB reached 6 tons per month of the total loss value estimated at tens of millions which must be borne by farmers.

"My hoard in Pakaran Village, Cempaga Hulu District almost every month experiences theft of fruit, even indications of looting because it involves many people," he said, quoting Antara.

This problem, he continued, had actually occurred since 3 years ago and towards the end of the year it was increasingly rampant, not only the company's gardens were looted but also farmers' gardens.

As a result of the looting, he added, farmers' income was eroded and even threatened the sustainability of palm FFB production, especially since they also damaged trees, because the fruit was not ripe, the loss was much greater.

"We ask the authorities to be firm, farmers are already restless and their income is clearly decreasing. If this is allowed, sorry for the fate of the community farmers who manage the gardens," said Pandiangan.

According to the Chairman of the LIRA NGO DPD, Seruyan Afner Juliwarno, a group of palm oil thieves is currently starting to look like an epidemic, because hundreds or even thousands of people have been carried out.

"The thousands of people stole it. So stealing it was during the day. This mass theft. Now many community gardens have also been stolen. They also babat community gardens if the company's gardens are tightened," he said.

According to him, the thieves are mostly not people around oil palm plantations, but from areas outside the sub-districts, even outside Seruyan Regency.

"The motive for the oil palm thieves is not because of economic pressure, but for drug consumption," he said when contacted.

He said, if the condition continued, it would be feared that palm oil would threaten independent farmers and the community around oil palm plantations.

Therefore Afner hopes that the legal apparatus will not only arrest oil palm thieves, but also arrest their custodians, because they accommodate stolen FFBs. In addition, they also took action against drug dealers in Seruyan.

"We ask the police to take action against the collectors of stolen fruit, not only the thieves, including drug dealers. They are the culprits," he said.