The sun is slowly emitting its soft light, when the farmers live on the coast of Kusamba Beach, Bali, began to move for their activities. In contrast to rice farmers who need rice fields, farmers here live depend on coastal sand and sea water.
They are salt farmers, every day working from the morning to the afternoon to produce salt grains from abundant sea water in traditional ways, typical Kusamba.
In Banjar Tribuana area, Kusamba, Klungkung Regency, Bali, I Wayan Purna is one of the salt farmers succeeded in living his family thanks to this livelihood, his consumers came to turn from around to overseas guests.
The kusamba salt is served as a meal set in one of the restaurants in Kuta Utara, Badung, Bali.
Petani runs looking for sea water in Kusamba Beach, Klungkung, Bali.
There are a number of things that make the Kusamba salt in demand for a variety of consumers, the most eye case is in its characteristics, with a white color of clean shimmering crystal tub with a slightly larger turn than a mill salt.
For the taste, she is not too salty, more savory, and when farmers make use of coconut troughs then there will be a little remaining sweetness.
Wayan Purna tells, the characteristics of this Kusamba salt never changed even though he himself did not know the history of this product was born, who certainly he was the fourth generation of his family who continued this activity.
Petani seeks sea water when salt making process at Kusamba Beach.
Petani watering sea to salt making land in Kusamba Beach, Klungkung.
"This is down findingrun, if I am from 1998 helping father, if the father forwarded from the grandfather, let me know from before the grandfather I buyut already began to tick. Seingat me along Kusamba Beach in 1980 all the activities of his citizen are still farming salt," he said.
In one time the harvest, with a submerged weather without obscurring, rain, and strong wind, it can harvest 20 kilograms of salt, and if the regular harvest is carried out then the forecast in one month it can collect 400 kilograms of salt.
"If for this time the farmers deposit to the cooperative once a month 100 kg per month. The rest I canned in plastic bags if there is a buyer is sad, usually the individual can buy up to 50 kilograms," said Wayan Purna.
The farmers process the sand that has been purified by sea water when the process of salt making in Kusamba Beach, Klungkung, Bali.
Petani conducts the process of salt making in Kusamba Beach.
To cooperative, each member sells salt at Rp11.000 per kilogram, while for buyers directly sold Rp25,000 per kilogram of course with better quality.
Longer salt is left then it will be more dry and savory, the salt is given to domestic and foreign buyers who deliberately come to their beachfront home.
If it is calculated, in a month if the entire yield is exhausted then it can collect money at Rp8,6 million nets because salt farming does not require a cost capital.
Petani collects salt harvested in Kusamba Beach, Klungkung.
Petani collects salt into the sacks for sale in Kusamba Beach, Klungkung, Bali.
The Wayan Purna does not know surely for salts purchased by the guest, but from customer stories usually the salt is used from individual consumption, cooking materials in restaurants, to tourist cendramata.
"Individu is sometimes there that buy 50 kilograms for meat soaks, there is a regular dining stall for 3 kilograms of sate, there is also an overseas guest buy 1-2 kilograms," he said.
International tourists from Japan and France are most often coming, the word Wayan, usually one person buys 1-2 kilograms of salt and divided in several packaging to be used by-by.
Cooperatives showed salt products produced by farmers in Kusamba Beach.
For domestic tourists, those who come from Jakarta and Manado are most often encountered Wayan Purna, even they often forward information to their relatives so that it can buy up to 50 kilograms.
The result of salt farming for this is very useful for the 43 years old farmers family, where for almost 25 years the need of his family is fully obtained from salt farming.
Photo and text : Nyoman Hendra Wibowo
Author : Fanny Octavianus