Kapur ix is the heaven of Gambier, this sub-district of Lima Puluh Kota has land area of 723.36sqkm mostly hills and valley, ranging from 140 to 720 m above sea level. The Population of Kapur ix is 26, 479. 87% of the population are farmers, 10% traders/suppliers and 3% others.
90% of the farmers in Kapur ix is Gambier farmers. Kapur ix is the largest Gambier producing sub-district in the whole of Indonesia. They produce over 6500MT of Gambier annually. As Gambier being the major cash crop, they have “farmer cooperative societies” run by the local government. But unfortunately these “farmer cooperative societies” are not running properly.
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| gambier farmer at Lubuk Alai - Kapur ix |
Traders/suppliers from kapur ix have tie-ups with big exporters/export houses in cities like Padang, Medan and Jakarta.
Farmers of kapur ix are worried about the “Plastic rules” and the “gudka ban” in india. As India is the biggest market for their Gambier produce.
Due to the new regulations on paan masala packing in india. The prices of Gambier had drastically gone down and had affected the economy of Kapur ix badly. The news on ban of gudka at India had been a matter of concern for the Gambier farmers in the sub-district. The suppliers are keeping a track of the Indian Market through their respective Exporters.
Price of Gambier had crashed from IDR 32,000.00/kg at December 2010 to IDR 17,000.00/kg March 2011. Currently the market had picked up slightly to a bit over IDR 20,000.00/kg.
Gambier farmers are now working in Rubber & Palm Oil plantations as well as migrating to different states in search for jobs. A price below IDR 20,000.00 /kg for Gambier is not viable for the farmers.
