Rice Fields: An Investigative Look

Rice hasn’t always been the major staple of my diet, but since moving to Meulaboh it’s rare for a day to pass without my rice cooker’s red light turned on. Yet I know so little about the rice fields surrounding this town, other than they provide my major source of nourishment and make beautiful backdrops for bike rides.

To inform myself and the My Meulaboh readers about this essential livelihood, I spoke with Jamali and two other rice farmers from Ujong Drien as they took a break under a thatched hut.

Only 34 years old, Jamali has been a rice farmer for 20 years now. Seven days a week and up to nine hours a day he cultivates his rice fields on his rented hectare (2.2 acres) of land. Rice farming is a tradition in Jamali’s family and he is honored to follow in the path of family members who came generations before him. According to Jamali, “Farming makes my soul happy.”

Sitting with his colleagues, Jamali proudly points out that the Ujong Drien rice farmers no longer use the traditional cangkul (a tool similar to a hoe) to farm. For over a year now they have been using modern machinery, thanks to the assistance of Mercy Corps. Although this group of farmers must share the donated equipment, the men agreed that sharing is never a problem.

Instead, what poses the greatest difficulty for these farmers is the reality that their rice fields no longer produce what they used to. If circumstances were perfect, they would be able to harvest three crops a year. Unfortunately, the tsunami changed these ideal conditions and now the fields produce only two crops a year. Apparently, the tsunami brought great amounts of debris and sand into their fields and also increased the salinity. Now, nearly 20 months later, they’re still not harvesting what they did pre-tsunami. Despite these challenging conditions, Jamali still expects to harvest 4.5 tons of rice from his one hectare plot each time he plants. Now that’s a lot of nasi goreng!

When the rice is ready to be sold, Jamali and his friends don’t take it directly to the markets; instead, it’s sold to a processing plant in Ujong Tanjong, from where it is eventually purchased by local markets and stores. This rice is known as Breuh Gampong. They noted that while the Ramos rice is very popular, it is actually shipped into town from Medan. Therefore, “If people would like to support the local community, they should ask for Breuh Gampong,” Jamali and his friends said with a smile.

And if people would really like to support these rice farmers, Jamali and his colleagues are inviting NGO workers to help them harvest their fields in late November. Hopefully, harvesting will be a great opportunity to gain an even better understanding into the lives of rice farmers and to give participants a deeper appreciation for Meulaboh’s favorite little grain.