Susi Agustina Wilujeng (right) with the ITS Urban Farming team when receiving guest visits from IPB in the garden

ITS Campus, ITS News-in the midst of social distancing at the time of the Covid-19 pandemic today, everyone is still encouraged to consume nutritious food to keep the body healthy with the adequacy of vitamins and minerals. Recognizing this, organic vegetable plantation (SayOr) Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) in the Eco Urban Farming program in Smart Eco-Development Campus continues to produce products to meet the nutritional needs of society.

Eco Urban Farming is a program that has been running it since 2014 ago. The Program is run by utilizing the vacant land that exists in ITS for agricultural land. It is agricultural cultivation that relies on natural materials in nature without using synthetic chemicals such as pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

Chairman of ITS Smart Eco Campus Development Unit, Susi Agustina Wilujeng explained, during this pandemic this time the garden of SayOr ITS remains to cared for and directed by the three daily freelancers. “Since this working from home time they still have work, because it is a pity the land can be abandoned if not planted and harvested,” she explained.

After the vegetables are harvested, she continued, the vegetables will be packed and then announced to customers through Whatsapp group chat, which currently consists of 250 people. For customers who live in the ITS environment, vegetables can be delivered directly to homes and or can be stored and purchased at the K1-Mart owned by ITS employees Cooperative. “After being harvested at 10 o’clock (morning) I announced and the customer can direct the message,” explained the lecturer of Departement of Environmental Engineering ITS.

Susi admitted that after the work from home, SayOr Harvest is always sold out within 30 minutes after it was announced. Different from the usual that sometimes remains and sold at K1-Mart. SayOr sold also varies, but the majority of vegetables such as mustard, green spinach, long beans, red spinach, gedi leaves, Kenikir, Gedi leaves, Gambas Pakcoy, and Kangkung, and there are also cassava and banana.

Some organic vegetables harvested from the garden of SayOr Eco Urban Farming ITS

“Currently it is not easy to get organic vegetables at affordable prices, especially with having to stay at home, shopping options are also limited. Testimonials from customers also say that this organic vegetable tastes good, easy to cook, and durable than vegetables exposed to chemicals, “she said.

During this time, Susi added, customers who buy products from the SayOr garden vary, there are not ITS civitas academics. But after a period of pandemic due to a lockdown on ITS campus, these temporary purchasers are preferred to reside in ITS environment. “People outside will be difficult to order because they should go to K1-Mart on the campus, so the customer only from ITS environment or lecturer whose still work in the campus they can take it at K1-Mart,” she added.

Organic vegetables are grown in the garden of SayOr in ITS Eco Urban Farming

Eco Urban Farming ITS is in addition to being used for the production of organic vegetable plants is also used as a research location for ITS students especially the Department of Biology students. “Every year there is five research that uses Urban Farming land as the location for ITS research,” said Susi.

This lecturer also added that in the future Urban Farming will further optimize the land to maximize production. There are also various improvements such as the greenhouse repairs that existed in the land. “We will also do a rejuvenation of some kinds of vines,” she concluded. (ri/rev/ITS Public Relations)

Harvest from SayOr’s garden after being packaged and ready to be marketed to the community