INTRODUCING NEW GRAFTING TECHNIQUES TO COMBAT PESTS AND DISEASES

COUNTRY: Sulawesi, Indonesia
THEME: Economic

Indonesia is the world's third largest cocoa exporter, producing approximately 425,000 tons of cocoa each year with at least 70 percent grown on the island of Sulawesi. Although cocoa represents less than one percent of Indonesia's exports, more than 400,000 smallholders on Sulawesi are dependent on income from its cultivation and success.

For many years yields grew strongly, but more recently the cocoa crop on Sulawesi has been badly affected by pests and diseases, and outputs have been in decline. Cocoa pod borer (CPB), a pest which can decimate yields, is now affecting most farms on Sulawesi, and black pod disease is a further threat to these rural economies. These threats must be controlled for cocoa to survive as a viable economic commodity. The most sustainable way to do this is to rehabilitate the old cocoa trees by grafting them with high yielding pest/disease resistant budwood.

As one of the world's leading cocoa users, Mars, Incorporated employs scientists who specialize in cocoa sustainability and spend much of their time in the field working with cocoa and cocoa farmers. Mars specialists had observed the deterioration in Indonesian cocoa, but feared that the success of plantation-style interventions with the smallholders of Sulawesi would be limited. They were, however, aware of techniques that were being used successfully by smallholders in cocoa growing countries in South America.

These techniques involve top-grafting improved budwood material onto chupons growing from the base of existing trees. Farmers identify their high yielding trees that appear most resistant to CPB, take budwood from them and graft it onto low yielding trees. Within four weeks, the graft will have taken. The process is low risk and low input - the only requirements are nimble fingers, a sharp knife to make the incision for the graft, and a plastic bag to create a humid chamber. Success rates to date are as high as 80-90 percent.

Knowing how to achieve improvements is one thing, but sharing them is more difficult. Communications with farming communities throughout the world are traditionally organized and funded by national ministries of agriculture via extension services that visit agricultural areas and raise awareness of good farming practices. Indonesia is no exception, and the need to improve cocoa quality and reduce crop losses is acknowledged by the authorities there. Working with the authorities, a field trial was established in Noling village, South Sulawesi, and farmer representatives and extension service workers from all cocoa-growing areas of the island were invited to visit the site to view the work and attend training sessions. They were encouraged to share their new skills with other cocoa farmers on their return to their communities.

Development-style projects, like this one, are about working in partnership. In this case, Mars partnered with the Australian Development Agency (ACIAR) to run a major workshop that contributed to the spread of knowledge about this simple grafting method. Other partners included PRIMA Cacao and the SUCCESS Alliance.

From the perspective of the Indonesian extension service, industry intervention has given a welcome boost to their efforts. It is hoped that the new simple grafting techniques will be widely used and make a contribution to the economic viability of cocoa in the region.

For Mars, the investment has been in sync with the objective of developing a secure source of better quality cocoa beans. Smilja Lambert, the Mars scientist who developed the project, says: "I believe that these simple interventions can really make a difference for the cocoa farmers in Sulawesi." Lambert is enthusiastic about the potential for this learning to spread quickly among Sulawesi cocoa farming communities.

Overall, the program is making a positive impact. The intervention requires little investment and improvements can be seen in the short-term. This work has the potential to stabilize both the economic and environmental situation of the enthusiastic farmers. It is forecast that the adoption rate of the training will be high.

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