Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Ahmad Nasrodin has been struggling with chocolate for the last few years. He and the residents of his village, Nglanggeran Village, Gunung Kidil Regency, Yogyakarta, are trying to take their luck from just farming cocoa to producing chocolate products.

It all started in 2017. With a land area of ​​just 10.5 hectares or 4,000 cocoa trees, it is impossible for him and the residents to prosper if there is no other “breakthrough” in his business.

As a result, they try to manage the other potential of the cocoa produced to gain added value. Guidance from the Indonesian Export Financing Institute (LPEI)/Indonesia Eximbank was a turning point for farmers.

“In the past, we only sold dried cocoa beans,” he said when speaking to journalists when met some time ago. “However, when processing is carried out, the price of our cocoa products increases.”

In contrast to selling raw, he said adding value can increase profits many times over. Fermentation is the key to Ahmad and the farmers' business.

“Raw cocoa is only priced at IDR 2,000 per kilo,” he said. “The fermented cocoa is priced at IDR 60,000 per kilo.”

Not only that, with help from other LPEI supervisors, farmers have also succeeded in making several other chocolate products. Such as chocolate powder to chocolate fat.

“Three kilograms of cocoa is processed into one kilogram of powder which costs IDR 250,000,” he explained. “Chocolate fat from five kilograms of cocoa beans… around IDR 175,000.”

Ahmad said that chocolate products actually don't sell very well in Yogyakarta. Therefore, his party is trying to carry out other innovations.

“One of them is making ampyang or brownies,” he said again.

Photo: Ahmad Nasrodin, Chairman of Omah Kakao Doga. (CNBC Indonesia/Sefti Oktarianisa) Ahmad Nasrodin Chairman of Omah Kakao Doga. (CNBC Indonesia/Sefti Oktarianisa)

Photo: Ahmad Nasrodin, Chairman of Omah Kakao Doga. (CNBC Indonesia/Sefti Oktarianisa) Ahmad Nasrodin Chairman of Omah Kakao Doga. (CNBC Indonesia/Sefti Oktarianisa)

High quality

In fact, in terms of quality, Ahmad's cocoa and its farmers are no less competitive. Fermentation makes buyers foreigners “hooked” on Ahmad's chocolate and the farmers.

Monnier chocolate, which is marketed abroad, is proof of this. Per week, at least 10 kg of chocolate is sold to the maker, at a price of IDR 60,000 per kilo.

“Vincent still wants to take chocolate even though there is only one kilogram,” said Ahmad buyers-his.

Ahmad himself admitted that he and the residents did not mind doing business with Vincent. Because the product produced will still write “Gunung Kidul” as the source of chocolate.

Export & Global Potential

Actually There is huge export potential for Indonesian chocolate. Therefore LPEI inaugurated the village as a foreign exchange village in May 2023.

Gunung Kidul Foreign Exchange Village is a collaboration between the First Ministry of Finance (Ministry of Finance, PT SMF & LPEI) with the Amanah Doga Sejahtera Cooperative. The ultimate goal is to encourage village economic growth and the welfare of village communities.

“We introduced export procedures, training and assistance involving the Ministry of Finance I and invited export experts, namely the Directorate General of Customs and Excise. Then we also brought in experts for cocoa from the foreign exchange village fostered by LPEI in Jembrana, Bali,” said the Head of the Commodity & Industrial Development Department LPEI, Nilla Meiditha.

“So, in this mentoring method, we use foreign exchange villages that have successfully exported and become resource persons,” he added.

“Cocoa in Nglanggeran already has its own brand, namely Kakao Gunung Kidul. There will be 2 more assistance in 2024. So the hope is to introduce Nglanggeran chocolate from local to global,” explained Nilla again.

[Gambas:Video CNBC]

(sef/sef)