Integration of Farm with Biomass Plantation or Energy Plantation

The long and expensive social costs for the production of hardwoods such as teak which require a minimum of 15 years make Perhutani company replace them with fast-rotating plants such as gliricidia. As for private companies, the main reason for growing fast-rotation species is mainly profit. Commodities that provide quick returns, with minimal risk. Short harvest time of wood which is only around 2-3 years and can be repetitive (coppice) repeatedly without the need to replanting is the advantage of these plants. Planting and caring for the tree is also very easy. The price of wood that is only worth the waste wood or firewood also mitigates the social cost of securing wood theft. The use of wood as a source of biomass or raw materials in the wood processing industry such as the manufacture of particle boards or as an energy source for example by processing it into wood pellets and wood briquettes. Hundreds of thousands of hectares have been planned for the planting and will take several years to come.

In addition to the main product namely wood, there are actually two products from the tree that can be utilized namely flowers and leaves (whole tree utilization). Flowers for beekeeping or production of honey and leaves for animal feed or meat production. Sheep, goat and cattle farms can be developed close to the plantation so that they are close to feed sources. Although the protein content in gliricidia leaves ranges from 18-24% or high enough for animal feed in general, so it is very good for animal feed, because concentrated feed usually only contains about 15% protein, but to get a balanced feed is still needed a number of other nutrients . Other complementary nutritional needs can be obtained from the surrounding community by collaborating through community empowerment. Nutrients needed for animal feed to become complete feed are complete sources of fiber, sources of protein, vitamins and minerals. Gliricidia leaves with 18-24% protein content as a source of protein, while grass or straw as a source of fiber and added vitamins and minerals.

Grazing
To produce superior livestock products, livestock grazing is the solution. With grazing, livestock will be healthier and feed costs can be cheaper because grass can be directly obtained. With an area of biomass or energy plantations that reaches tens to hundreds of thousands hectares, then allocating several tens or hundred hectares is certainly not difficult. The area can be used for pasture herds. Certain grasses can be planted as a source of food in the pasture. Sheep and cattle can even be farmed and herded in the same pasture field. Rotational grazing is a shepherding technique that can be applied because it is more effective and efficient than conventional grazing.

Single Grazing

 

Mixed Grazing

Feed Factory
With the composition of gliricidia leaves produced from each tree reaching around 30% and an average of 10,000 trees per hectare planted, the number of leaves produced from biomass or energy plantations is huge and excessive for consumption on farms. Then it also has the potential to create animal feed factory. The livestock feed produced can then supply feed to a number of farms in various regions so that the livestock business is growing and self-sufficiency in meat is easily achieved. Meat imports that reach tens or even hundreds of thousands tons should be avoided and sufficient from domestic livestock businesses.

The main problems of livestock are feed and markets. When the feed problem has been resolved it means 50% of the problem has been solved. As for starting a business, the first thing to note is the market or the buyer. If the products produced from the business that we do have no market or buyer, then the business will lose money and go out of business. The potential lack of meat in the country can become a large market potential and export market. Regarding sheep and goats, In Indonesia indeed a number of regions prefer goats such as Jakarta, Central Java and East Java while other regions prefer sheep like Yogyakarta. This should also be a concern regarding the target market.