PALMOILMAGAZINE, ACEH UTARA – The Koperasi Berkat Bunga Damai Cotgirek, located in Aceh Utara, proudly announced a significant milestone in promoting sustainability within the palm oil industry. This achievement involves the successful management of independent smallholders’ palm oil plantations spanning approximately 1,550 hectares and comprising 500 registered smallholders. The announcement was made on Friday, March 22, 2024.
This endeavor underscores the cooperative’s dedication to upholding the standards set forth by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and the Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO), as outlined in President’s Regulation Number 44/2025 concerning ISPO.
Abubakar AR, Chairman of Koperasi Berkat Bunga Damai Cotgirek Aceh Utara, stated that the process is underway to ensure thorough compliance, with the final audit scheduled for September 2024. Attaining RSPO and ISPO certificates is anticipated to yield substantial benefits for independent smallholders, including access to grants and incentive credits. As part of this support, funds will be allocated for purchasing fertilizers, addressing one of the primary needs of smallholders.
Abubakar AR also emphasized the commitment to support their sustainable plantations. He is optimist, the union would get grant from Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency (PFMA) through General Directorate of the Plantation Ministry of Agriculture. “The proposal (to get a grant) was online through infrastructure program and they believe they can get it,” he said to Palmoilmagazine.com on Sunday (24/3/2024).
He also mentioned the union is waiting for the revision of regulation of minister of agriculture. The smallholders also believed the terms and conditions in the regulation.
By having available infrastructures and human resources, including management, and operators in mill, the union is ready to operate the mill as one integrated package.
To confirm that the process would smoothly run. Abubakar AR regularly visited the related instances, such as, General Directorate of Plantation, to discuss what to do next. They would do a field visit after Idul Fitri to do a feasibility study and environment analysis with international-scale supports, such as USAID Segar. (T2)
