First Edamame Harvest Marks Initial Step in Strengthening Rural Economy

A rural agricultural empowerment programme has once again delivered tangible results. The Indonesia Setara Foundation (YIS), alongside several partners, successfully harvested its first edamame crop as part of an integrated agricultural ecosystem development initiative aimed at improving rural farmers’ welfare.

This initial harvest marks the start of the edamame farming programme, executed through cross-sector collaboration involving YIS, Wiguna Farm, the Agribusiness and Technology Park (ATP) of IPB as the off-taker, Gebrakan Anak Negeri (GAN), and BSI Maslahat.

YIS founder Sandiaga Salahudin Uno stated that the Desa Emas programme is designed not only to boost agricultural yields but also to build a sustainable rural economic system. He said the agricultural sector requires an integrated ecosystem from upstream to downstream to ensure direct benefits for rural communities.

‘In practice, we partnered with Wiguna Farm to cultivate edamame using one hectare of waqf land as the programme’s initial phase. Support provided includes seed supply, fertiliser, education, training, farmer mentoring, and market access for harvested produce,’ Sandiaga said in a press release from Jakarta on Monday, 25 May 2026.

Wiguna Farm owner Hasan emphasised that consistent mentoring is crucial for improving farmer productivity. He noted the first harvest’s success demonstrates that collaboration between social institutions, businesses, and farmers can create a more targeted and economically valuable farming model.

‘A key focus of the programme is ensuring market certainty for farmers. Therefore, ATP IPB acts as the off-taker, directly purchasing edamame harvests from farmers. This arrangement is expected to secure market access and stabilise rural farmers’ incomes,’ he added.