When Covid-19 hit Indonesia, industries resembling fishing destroyed. However, one sector has bucked this trend: seaweed farming.
Research by The Conversation to introduce Seaweed farming in Indonesia is booming in the course of the pandemic.
There are many possible reasons for this modification, including environmental conditions, agricultural practices and the results of Covid-19.
The resilience of seaweed farming is essential given the country’s status as the biggest producer on the earth With hydrocolloid seaweed. Indonesia produces two-thirds of the world’s supply. This seaweed is mostly not eaten, but is sold to factories to be processed right into a powder used to thicken foods resembling ice-cream.
Tests
For a case study of the mainland coast of Pangkep in South Sulawesi, we used newly available high-resolution, high-frequency satellite imagery from a US-based Earth imaging company PlanetLabs mapping seaweed farming over time.
While Pangkep is only one regency contributing to the Indonesian seaweed industry, our methodology provides insight into the impact of COVID-19. This approach may be prolonged to cover a bigger area.
We have mapped seaweed production along the Pangkep continent from April 2017 to December 2020. The map shows how seaweed production changes depending on the season – just about all seaweed is grown in the primary half of the 12 months.
We then compared seaweed production in 2020 to previous years to see if there was a major difference. We found that seaweed production from May to September 2020 was significantly higher than in previous years.
Environmental conditions, local agricultural practices and the economic impacts of Covid-19, resembling trade disruptions and job losses, can have contributed to this trend.
1. Environmental conditions
A variety of aspects influence the expansion rate of seaweed. These include water temperature, sunlight, salinity, nutrients, acidity levels, seed size and genetic material, sedimentation, water oxygen levels and disease infection.
For example, ocean salinity – the concentration of salt in seawater – has a very strong effect on seaweed growth.
The the salinity of the Java Sea varies all year long as monsoon rainfall increases, rivers flow into the ocean.
As a result, different rainfall patterns annually can increase or decrease seaweed growth rates. Farmers are responding to this by changing their production.
2. Agricultural practices
The cultivation method can even affect the quantity of seaweed produced. A very necessary factor is the strategy of plant reproduction.
Indonesian seaweed is clonally propagated from cuttings.
Some farmers do it yourselfwhile others buy seedlings from other farmers or distributors.
Access top quality the seeds are A challenge for industry. Some farmers spend greater than half income from growing seaweed for seeds for the following harvest.
Government support programs for farmers can due to this fact have a powerful impact on the profitability of seaweed production.
3. Effects of COVID-19
While the above aspects could also be chargeable for increased seaweed production, the economic impacts of COVID-19 are more likely to be a minimum of partly chargeable for this modification.
During the pandemic in 2020 seaweed prices have fallen by 27%.
This suggests that farmers are producing more seaweed but selling it at a cheaper price than before the pandemic.
Why would that be?
It is probably going that while the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted quite a lot of industries in Indonesia, the impact on seaweed farming has been less severe. This is because dried seaweed may be stored relatively easily, making it more immune to disruptions in the availability chain.
This signifies that although seaweed prices are lower than before, the industry should still have grow to be more desirable in comparison with other sectors which have been affected by greater changes.
For example, in some parts of Bali this was the case huge increase in seaweed production consequently of job loss in the course of the pandemic.
While satellite data alone cannot provide an entire picture of the complex impact of the pandemic on seaweed farming livelihoods, it does alert us to general patterns and trends.
Expanded use of distant sensing over larger areas, along with field surveys wherever possible, may help monitor the fluid situation.
The authors’ interdisciplinary research project under the Australia-Indonesia Research Partnership focuses on improving the performance of the Indonesian seaweed industry, with a selected deal with South Sulawesi. To learn more about this and the work of the Indonesian and Australian research teams on youth and the brand new railway, read more details Here.
