Diversification of Local Tubers through Optimization of Cocoa Farming in Supporting Sustainable Food Security

Abstract

The rate of world population growth gets faster every year, while on the other hand the land available for food production activities is increasingly limited. Efforts to increase income and food crop production by using cocoa farming to support national food security can be done by optimizing of land through crop diversification patterns by planting local tubers under cocoa farming. This research aims to analyze the optimization of land use, revenue and production costs. In addition, analyzing the nutritional content contained in each type of local tubers, namely sweet potato, cassava and taro. The research was conducted in the the buffer zone of Lore Lindu National Park (TNLL), Palolo District, Sigi Regency, Central Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. The results showed that the optimization of land use and revenue was obtained through the diversification pattern of sweet potato and cocoa. Optimization of the costs use occurs in the use of fertilizer production inputs. In addition, sweet potatoes have a higher calorific value, protein and fat compared to cassava and taro. However, the carbohydrate content of cassava is higher than that of sweet potato and taro.