Food Brigade accelerates rice planting on 500 hectares in Batola

The Food Brigade, consisting of millennial farmers mentored by the Ministry of Agriculture, is accelerating rice planting on 500 hectares of land in Anjir Pasar Village, Jejangkit District, Barito Kuala Regency, South Kalimantan. This effort is part of a national simultaneous planting programme covering 52,000 hectares of CSR and Oplah land.

Barito Kuala Regent Bahrul Ilmi stated that the Food Brigade plays a strategic role in accelerating planting and boosting the morale of local farmers. He noted that the brigade not only assists with cultivation operations but also serves as an example of good, orderly, and modern agricultural practices for other farmers.

“The presence of the Food Brigade can become a driving force for modern agriculture,” he said.

The Regent also mentioned that the support of agricultural machinery from the Ministry of Agriculture encourages farmers to increase productivity and makes the agricultural sector a source of pride and self-esteem for the people of South Kalimantan.

Bahrul added that Barito Kuala Regency, as one of South Kalimantan’s food barns, continues to be a pilot area for modern agricultural development for other regencies. He expressed hope that supporting agricultural infrastructure needs can be realised, including the construction of a water control gate to support a second planting season and the building of farm roads to ease farmers’ access to their land.

“Infrastructure support will boost the planting index so that Jejangkit farmers can plant rice up to twice a year,” he said.

The Barito Kuala Food Crops and Horticulture Office recorded that in 2025, Batola contributed 333 thousand tonnes of unhusked rice to paddy production. This year’s harvest target is expected to exceed last year’s achievement, partly by converting swamp land into productive land through the People’s Rice Field Creation (CSR) and Land Optimisation (Oplah) programmes.