Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo highlighted the importance of preparing buffer or reserve stocks to reduce raw material scarcity risks, and secure food supplies for the next two years to face extreme weather anomalies in Indonesia.

“First it is hot, and then it rains. When it rains, floods soon follow,” he remarked during a hybrid event in Surabaya, East Java, on Thursday.

The La Nina phenomenon, which potentially causes flooding and threaten food resiliency, is estimated to last until February 2022, which will then be followed by a long dry season, the minister noted.

Thus far, the Ministry of Agriculture has over 10 million tons of rice in stock, which will be prepared as food stock for the next two years, he informed.

This will be done in order to avoid problems arising as a result of La Nina, he explained.

The weather anomaly should be used as a chance by institutions such as the Agriculture Research and Development Agency to create new submergence-tolerant rice variants, Limpo said.

The agency should also prepare gogo rice variants that are able to withstand a long dry season, he added.

Ponds should also be created to act as water reservoirs for storing excess rainwater, he said.

This would ensure water availability for plants and animals during the dry season and help prevent flooding during the rainy season, he explained.

Water ponds could also be used for drip irrigation to save water and fertilizer by letting water drip slowly to plant roots, he elaborated.

This needs to be done so that the agriculture sector can face various existing natural challenges, he affirmed.

“We should start saving food. Do not let any food go to waste. Be careful of existing weather. Do not handle other problems before the people’s food,” he expounded.

Source: Antara News