Behind the Sticker: Indonesia / Burni Telong Community
Can you introduce yourself?
My name is Tarmani. I'm not even 50 yet.
What is coffee to you?
For household needs. For us to eat. Sometimes there are events, like parties. We take turns to buy what is needed like five kilos of sugar for regular social gatherings. Just daily necessities.
Why did you become a coffee farmer?
If I didn't become a farmer, what would I be? I can't work in an office. I only graduated elementary school. I can't possibly be an employee. We just live on, and most importantly hopefully we don't experience problems when farming. The only problem is that the plantation is small. One hectare at the most. Not to mention that a little area will be used to build a house for my child.
What are the challenges?
The current coffee price bothers me a lot. The price of coffee is very low. We, the farmers, only rely on that. What we hope for. When the price is like this, it is not sufficient for household needs. If I didn't have children who are still in school, we could get by. I have children who go to school far away. It's hard for the farmers with prices like this. We want high coffee prices. It doesn't need to be too high. I just wish it was like last year, around 10,000-12,000 rupiah. Praise be to God.
Hopes for the future?
I hope this coffee from Aceh can be useful there. It can be used to fulfill people's needs there. And if possible, please increase the coffee price. So that the farmers can be happy. Not merely happy, but we can be more satisfied.
What would a second payment mean to you?
I would be happy because I would receive more money.
__________
First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Hayati. I was born in 1952 so now I am 67 years old.
What is coffee to you?
Coffee is my livelihood to raise my nine children.
When did you start planting coffee?
The first time I planted coffee, my husband laughed at me. He said, “Mother, women can’t plant coffee, it will not bear fruit.” “Dear, if it doesn’t bear fruit, then we’ll just use the wood,” I said. But god willing, with the permission of Allah, from coffee I was able to send my nine children to school,at least until they finished high school.
What are the obstacles?
In the past the price of coffee was like tides. Sometimes it went up very high, sometimes it went very low. But as a farmer I have prepared myself. When I produce a lot of coffee, I can still control myself. Not wasting money, bearing in mind that I have nine children. How will my nine children fare in life? I don’t want them to end up as beggars. I’m able to calculate and prepare.
What are your hopes for the future?
With our associates in America now to accommodate our coffee produce praise be to god, we are very happy. We pick the coffee then “Hello the coffee is ready,” and they’ll come.
What would a second payment mean to you?
If there were additional funds like that it would be very useful. We could give charity alms, to help others in need. For good use, not for leisure.