Indonesia
English
Ketapang, 24 February 2025 – Politeknik Negeri Ketapang (Ketapang State Polytechnic) (Ketapang State Polytechnic, Politap) through the Center for Research and Community Service (P3KM) organized a Community Service (PKM) activity in the form of composting training for the Putra Mandiri Farmers Group in Tempurukan Village, Muara Pawan District, on Saturday, 24 February 2025.
This activity involved students from SMKN 1 Muara Pawan as well as final-year students from the Plantation Crop Production Technology (TPTP) Study Program. The main objective of this training was to provide education and skills to farmers regarding the processing of agricultural and livestock waste into environmentally friendly and economically valuable organic fertilizer.
The training was officially opened by the Director of Politap, Irianto SP, S.ST., M.MA., accompanied by the Vice Director for Academic Affairs, Dr. Anto Susanto,S.ST., M.P., and the Vice Director for Student Affairs, Erick Radwitya, S.S.T., M.T. In his opening remarks, the Director expressed his hope that this program would provide tangible benefits for the farmers group and serve as a first step toward the implementation of sustainable agriculture in the region.
“Through this program, we want to encourage the community, especially farmers, to become more independent in providing organic fertilizer. This way, they can increase agricultural yields in a more sustainable and efficient manner,” he said.
The Director also emphasized that this initiative is part of the polytechnic’s commitment to supporting the development of a more environmentally friendly agricultural sector.
“We hope this activity helps farmers reduce dependence on chemical fertilizers, lower production costs, and enhance agricultural productivity by converting organic waste into high-quality compost,” he added.
During the training, participants were taught composting techniques using readily available natural materials, including:
Oil palm fronds – as the primary source of fiber and carbon
Banana pseudostems – to accelerate decomposition and provide micronutrients
Animal manure (cattle/goat/chicken) – as a nitrogen source to speed up fermentation
Coconut coir – to increase potassium content and retain moisture
Rice bran – to enrich nutrients
Rice husks – to keep the compost structure looser and more aerated
Straw – to enhance fiber content in the compost
Emulsa – a fermentation mixture consisting of water, brown sugar, EM4, and EM21, which acts as a natural decomposing agent to speed up the decomposition process.
One of the innovations in this training was the use of an organic shredder machine resulting from research conducted by lecturers at Politeknik Negeri Ketapang. The machine accelerates the shredding of organic waste such as oil palm fronds, banana pseudostems, and straw, making composting materials decompose more easily.
The introduction of the shredder machine was met with enthusiastic feedback from the participants. Thanks to this technology, farmers no longer need to chop composting materials manually, which previously required significantly more time and physical effort.
“With this shredder machine, the composting process becomes much faster and more efficient. The hope is that this machine can help farmers process agricultural waste into high-quality organic fertilizer,” said one of the lecturer-researchers participating in the community service activity.
This activity represents a tangible synergy among academics, students, and the community in advancing modern agriculture. Moving forward, Politap plans to continue developing similar programs to support the welfare of farmers in Ketapang Regency. (finn)
