Painan (ANTARA) - The price of gambir sap at the level of traders in Pesisir Selatan Regency, W Sumatra plummeted to the lowest price of Rp 10,000 per kilogram after the outbreak of COVID-19.
"The price of gambir sap does not have any standard price, depending on the large traders in the city of Padang, and even has penetrated the price of Rp 100,000 per kilogram, but since the outbreak of COVID-19 the price dropped to Rp10 thousand per kilogram," said a gambir sap collecting trader in Sutera Subdistrict. Dulhendri in Painan on Monday.
According to him, with the current situation, gambir sap production was stalled, and normally in a day he was only able to buy 100 kilograms of gambir sap from farmers.
Whereas before, he could buy gambir sap between 400 kilograms to one ton in a day, and that was also felt by other collecting traders.
"This decline occurred because farmers did not want to harvest their gambir plants because the production costs were more higher than the selling price," he said.
At present gambir fields in the local area have been abandoned because it cannot meet the needs of the family.
Meanwhile Head of Food Crops, Horticulture and Plantations Department of Pesisir Selatan Nuzirwan said the decline in the price of gambir sap was due to the epidemic of COVID-19 that occurred in the world .
He encouraged farmers to continue caring for their fields because the price of gambir sap would gradually stabilize after the situation improved.
Gambir farmers are scattered in several districts ranging from Koto XI Tarusan, Bayang, IV Jurai, Batang Kapas, Sutera, Lengayang, Ranah IV Hulu Tapan and Linggo Sari Baganti with a total gambir field area of more than 14,313 hectares.
Transleted by: Mutiara Ramadhani
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Gambir prices in Pesisir Selatan plummeted, gambier fields began abandoned
Gambir farmers from Sutera Subdistrict, Pesisir Selatan are drying the gambir sap of their produce. (ANTARA / Didi Someldi Putra)
