Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the Archipelago Flower and Fruit Festival
The Genjring Party dance procession and the Nyengcelak Puspaning Ati performance by the Gandes Pamantes Dance Studio marked the beginning of the pinnacle of the Archipelago Flower and Fruit Festival (FBBN). Various activities adorned the celebration of the 10th FBBN in 2023.
The Secretary of Bogor Regency, Syarifah Sofiah Dwikorawati, expressed that the FBBN serves as motivation for millennial farmers to promote local fruit farming. This aligns with FBBN’s goal of enhancing the welfare of local farmers and promoting the diversity of Indonesian fruits and flowers.
“This event focuses on the development of agribusiness centers and the utilization of technology to capture the attention of the public and stakeholders in realizing an orange revolution in advancing local Indonesian fruits and flowers,” explained Teguh Herlambang, the event’s chairman.
On the first day of the festival, the festivities included a competition for superior fruits in two categories: avocado and grapes, with participants vying for a total prize of 11 million Indonesian Rupiah. A Dried Flower workshop covered topics such as the color wheel in flower combinations, types of flowers, flower design principles, and concluded with floral design creation.
Additionally, there was a Business Gathering event. As the name suggests, this activity brought together business operators, especially in ornamental plants and fruits, with stakeholders such as the government, industry, and academia. A member of the Tajurhalang Farmers Group stated, “I hope that this event can result in contractual relationships between us as producers and relevant parties,” he expressed.
One of the most attention-grabbing workshops for participants was the Mukimono Workshop. Mukimono is the Japanese art and technique of carving fruits or vegetables to enhance their aesthetic value. Another popular workshop was the EcoPrint and Own My Beads workshop.
The excitement continued into the second day, with the National Aglaonema Contest being one of the most anticipated competitions. This contest provided a platform for ideas to promote the rise of Indonesian aglaonema towards self-sufficiency and global market penetration.
“If we can produce our own aglaonema, why import? It’s not impossible. Our commitment is not only to be self-reliant but to make aglaonema a global product,” explained Liferdi Lukman, Director of Fruits and Floriculture at the Directorate General of Horticulture of the Ministry of Agriculture (Kementan) of the Republic of Indonesia.
The carnival was the highlight of this year’s FBBN event. After a four-year hiatus from the FBBN program, the carnival returned to the heart of the city to welcome the people of Bogor. Four decorated cars paraded through the city center and were accompanied by a marching band.
“FBBN has been organized for a long time by students of IPB University, especially those from the Faculty of Agriculture. Hopefully, this event can become a tradition for introducing Indonesian flowers and fruits,” said Prof. Ernan Rustiadi, Vice Rector of IPB University for Research, Innovation, and Agromaritime Development.
Mayor of Bogor, Dr Bima Arya Sugiarto, also had the opportunity to personally visit the micro, small, and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) booths that added to the festivities of this festival. (*/Rz) (IAAS/Hap)
