HOW WE HARVEST

For a long time, the villagers took what they needed from the forest. Were it fruit, wood, et cetera… It was not a problem as the use of these products was extensive.

In our sustainable program, our advisor teaches villagers how to limit harvesting. It allows them to harvest Rattan in an extensive manner. If the villagers maintain the rainforest in this sustainable way, we are able to guarantee them year round work and a weekly income. In this manner, the Rattan production becomes important once more and as Rattan plants need trees to climb on, the forest will be preserved.

After harvesting the Rattan has to be processed. This process offers work to many people. The fast-growing Rattan is filled with water and needs to dry for several days. After this, the Rattan is cleaned, sorted in different sizes and packed in bundles. This all takes a lot of handwork.

Afterwards, the labelled bundles are sent in a container to the basket factory on Java.