Covid-19: Issues and Challenges in Vegetables Crops for Resilience during Pandemic
Tri Ismono, M Sukri, Amelia Gita Tifani

Yayasan Mercy Corps Indonesia

Abstract

Due to pandemic, Indonesia Government has issued policies that limit people mobility in order to reduce the spread of Covid-19. One of the impacts of this policy is the decline of economic transaction among the people, including the transaction in the vegetable market. This causes the business income has decreased and will lead to the low consumption of vegetables due to lack of supply. However, there are also people who have started increase their consumption of vegetables (healty food) to increase body immune (Hapsari et al, 2020). Seeing this issue, Mercy Corps Indonesia through POWER program innovate in finding solutions to the problem : basic food needs can be still fulfilled, and farmers, are still able to marketing/selling their agricultural products. The approach is facilitate organizational and business capacity building, including optimizing digital channel for marketing and partnering with other actors along the value chain. Currently, farmer groups across program area, such as Subang, Banyuwangi and Gowa has able to marketing their product (crops) directly to main market and optimized social media (especially WA group) to sell directly to consumer and few others has sell their crops through e-commerce.

Keywords: Business Capacity Building, Digital Channel, Pandemic, POWER, Selling Product

Topic: Covid-19: Issues and Challenges in Vegetables for Resilience during Pandemic