When you are visiting Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue Center’s Food House, you will see a lot of buckets of foods. Piles of fruits slices: banana, pineapple, watermelon, pineapple, sour soup, cucumber, calabash, etc. Every day keeper and volunteers provide those foods to animals in the center. These various types of foods are to meet the needs of animals for variations in food as in nature, nutritional and nutritional needs obtained from different foods, and also as part of the rehabilitation process to reduce dependence on the same type of food.
However, Foods costed millions of Rupiah each month. Food is a serious business. When the center rescuing animals from illegal traders or local residences, they could not immediately release the animal to their natural habitat. Not because the animals came from various regions in Indonesia, but also because not all of animals are ready to survive in the wild. Some animals kept for so long in captivity that they become so dependent on human. Center also have to search suitable place for release. And that’s take times.
For a while, which can last for months or even years, the animals have to stay in the center. Center has to feed them every day excpet maybe for reptiles, that don’t need everyday foods. Previously, the center purchased foods from local market. They need 14.3 tons of foods each month. Food Garden is a program donated bay AKBH (Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation) that try to reduce the cost by minimizing the cost especially for fruits and vegetables. The program encourages staffs to grow plants in the land belong to Masarang Foundation.
For the first stage, staffs begin plant corn, cassava, pineapple, banana, watermelon, and calabash in Doro
beach (1.3 hectares) and nursery area. In Tulap, a sea turtle nesting site area, an hour drom Tasikoki, staffs planted banana dan pinapple at rocky hills besides the beach. At Pulisan (2 hectares) and Rurukan (a hectare). Tomohon, they planted corn and cassava.
Staff also purchase bananas directly from local residence instead of buying from broker. This practice can reduce costs up to 4 until 5 million rupiah. can reduce costs up to 4 until 5 million rupiah. The staffs are targeting 20 until 30 percent reduction each month. Due to less experience in planting, not all of the plants grow well. But so far, the progress is pretty good. They managed to harvest 9 sacks of corn from an area of only 200 square meters. Imagine if they plant in a wider area. Just say, 1 hectare. There is still a lot of unused land owned by Masarang Foundation that can be planted with crops.
Photos by Masarang Foundation team
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