A farmer in a conical hat harvesting rice in a golden field outside Bogor
Cijayanti · Kabupaten Bogor
6.63° S, 106.90° E
Petani / Farmers of Bogor

Grown here.
Shared without the middleman.

Rural farmers around Bogor sell their harvest to tengkulak — middlemen who buy low and mark up before the crop ever reaches a market. We interviewed farmers, middlemen and direct sellers, surveyed 90 consumers, and built this site so you can meet the people growing ubi, talas and singkong and reach them directly, no middleman in between.

See the harvest → Our research
Masalah / The problem

The price a farmer gets is not the price you pay

Agriculture employs 29.04% of Indonesia's population, yet the farmers we met in Cijayanti earn a thin margin. They sell to middlemen at low prices because it is easier — the buyer comes to them — and the middleman resells at a markup. Direct sellers keep more of the profit, but have to find their own customers. That is the gap this project tries to close.

How does limited market access affect the economic opportunities of farmers in Bogor's rural areas?
Survei / What 90 consumers told us

Demand isn't the problem. Access is.

We asked parents in Bogor how they buy vegetables and rice. Most shop at supermarkets or traditional markets and spend more than Rp 10.000 a trip — but very few have ever bought from a farmer directly.

29%
of Indonesia's population works in agriculture
46%
of parents surveyed lack access to buy from farmers
73%
would buy from farmers if they had access
79%
believe a website like this would help
See the full survey data →
Panen / This season

Fresh from Cijayanti

All products →
STEP 1

Browse the produce

See what's in season from Cijayanti — ubi, talas and singkong, grown without a middleman.

STEP 2

Reach out

Message us through the Contact page to connect with the farmer growing what you're after.

STEP 3

Arrange it directly

Quantity, price, pickup and payment are all worked out directly between you and the farmer — they keep all of it.

Hasil panen / Produce

The harvest

Three root crops grown by the farmers we interviewed in Cijayanti — dug fresh, whole and unwashed, straight from the ground.

Cijayanti, Kab. Bogor
Harvested to order · 2–3 days
Grown without a middleman
Produce  / 

Grown by
Good for
Harvest
Get in touch about this crop →
Penelitian / Our research

What we found in the fields

The team with a farmer in the rice field, Cijayanti
Cijayanti, August 2026 — the team with a local farmer in the field
Two students interviewing Pak Sahri in his rice field
Kali Putih, 2026 — interviewing Pak Sahri in his rice field

Our results show that farmers often earn a small profit because they sell their products to middlemen at lower prices. However, one farmer preferred using middlemen because it allows more people to earn money. Middlemen can then increase the price when selling to the market, while direct-to-consumer sellers prefer selling directly because it is simpler and gives them more control over their profit.

The middleman comes to the field. Finding buyers yourself takes time a farmer doesn’t have.

Our survey of 90 consumers found that most parents aged 30–49 regularly buy vegetables and rice, spending more than Rp 10.000 per purchase. However, most still buy from supermarkets or traditional markets instead of directly from farmers, showing that farmers have limited direct access to consumers.

We will measure our success by comparing farmers' market access before and after the website: the target is that 3 out of 5 farmers report increased access to potential customers.

Supratikno, Samudra Ivan, et al. “Determinant Factors Affecting Farmers’ Welfare in Kabupaten Bogor, West Java.” International Journal of Social Science Research and Review, vol. 7, no. 11, Nov. 2024, pp. 159–75. Interviews with farmers, middlemen and direct-to-consumer sellers, and a survey of 90 consumers, conducted by the team in 2026.
Edukasi / Why this matters

So, what’s wrong with middlemen?

The Indonesian Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that 29.04% of Indonesia’s population worked in agriculture in 2020 — the highest share on record. Even so, that welfare isn’t shared evenly, and the gap shows up clearly in Bogor’s farming villages. (Supratikno et al.)

Case 1

Kelompok Tani Rumpin, Bogor

This farmers’ group used to depend entirely on a tengkulak to sell their cassava. Selling this way kept prices low: the middleman bought cheap, then marked the crop up before it reached its next buyer. (Savitri)

Case 2

Desa Ligarmukti, Klapanunggal

Rice farmers here can’t set their own price — tengkulak do. Even after a good harvest, farmers still sell to middlemen because they need cash for daily costs, sometimes accepting a low price or storing their unmilled rice (gabah) for months while they wait. They’ve asked Bulog and the government to buy directly from them instead. (Atjo)

The result is the same in both cases: it’s harder for farmers to reach customers, and harder for them to grow their business or their income.

This project explores how limited market access affects the income and opportunities of small farmers in Bogor Regency. Through interviews with farmers, sellers and middlemen, we looked at how produce actually moves from field to buyer, and where that chain breaks down for the people growing it. This website shares what we found while also connecting farmers and their crops directly with consumers — so farmers can reach further than their own community, and buyers can see exactly who they’re supporting.

Sources
  1. Supratikno, Samudra Ivan, et al. “Determinant Factors Affecting Farmers’ Welfare in Kabupaten Bogor, West Java.” International Journal of Social Science Research and Review, vol. 7, no. 11, Nov. 2024, pp. 159–75.
  2. Savitri, Gusti Ayu Made Hanny Dian. “Optimalisasi Distribusi Singkong Pada Kelompok Tani Rumpin Bogor.” I-Com: Indonesian Community Journal, vol. 4, no. 3, Sept. 2024, pp. 1952–58.
  3. Atjo, M. Achsan. “Tengkulak Terapkan Harga Seenaknya, Petani Bogor Desak Bulog Segera Bertindak.” Berita 2 Bahasa, 16 Jan. 2025.
Tim / The team

Five students, one question

We are a Global Perspectives team from Sekolah Bogor Raya. We chose this issue because middlemen are deeply woven into how food moves in our own community, and we wanted to hear every side of it before proposing anything.

  • Elaine Agatha ZhangTeam lead — divides tasks, manages deadlines
  • Avangelique M. BraskoroNotes, deadlines and document organisation
  • Natcha PatanavirojOrganises the project solution and its information
  • Shannzara RahmedAnalyses interview results and evaluates the solution
  • Freya Aqeela WibowoFinds farmers and speakers, arranges interviews
Bukti & Aksi / Evidence & action

See the evidence behind this project

Interview recordings, survey responses and our sources are all collected in one folder. Click through to review everything we gathered for this project.

Open evidence folder →
Data / Full survey results

Everything 90 respondents told us

Three questions from our consumer survey, side by side: where people actually buy their produce, what stops them from buying directly, and what they’d need to know before they would.

29%
of Indonesia's population works in agriculture
46%
of parents surveyed lack access to buy from farmers
73%
would buy from farmers if they had access
79%
believe a website like this would help

Where do you buy these products?

90 responses · usual place to buy
Supermarket
56.7%
Traditional market (pasar tradisional)
52.2%
Warung / small shop
21.1%
Online
8.9%
Directly from farmers
2.2%
Roving veg seller (tukang sayur) nearby
1.1%

What makes it hard to buy direct?

90 responses · choose all that apply
I don’t know where to find farmers
45.6%
It’s easier to buy from the market
45.6%
The farmers are too far away
41.1%
I don’t know how to contact them
28.9%
I don’t know what products they sell
10%
I don’t know their prices
7.8%
Prefer buying in person (introvert)
1.1%

What would you need to know first?

90 responses · choose all that apply
Product quality
54.4%
Product availability
50%
Price
48.9%
Location
45.6%
Contact information
28.9%
Quantity available
11.1%
Delivery service
1.1%
Only 2.2% of respondents currently buy directly from farmers — yet quality, availability, price and location are exactly the information most say they’d need before doing so. Better access to that information could be what turns interest into an actual direct purchase.
Suara / In their own words

Two sides of the same harvest

Numbers say access is the problem. These are the people living it — four farmers who sell through different routes, and the middleman who connects them to market.

Petani / Farmer perspective

Selling the harvest, four different ways

What each farmer told us about who they sell to, and what it costs them.

Pak Dede standing in his field in Cijayanti
Pak Dede
Cijayanti · Kab. Bogor
Singkong · cassavaTalas · taro

As we interviewed Pak Dede, we found out that he uses a middleman and sometimes gets the opportunity to sell to a factory. He mentioned that he enjoyed selling through a middleman as he is able to get income while other people do also (“sharing”). He often sells to the market, and although the profit is not high, he still manages to gain a good amount of money for a living.

Indo ver

Saat kami mewawancarai Pak Dede, kami mengetahui bahwa ia menggunakan perantara dan terkadang mendapat kesempatan untuk menjual ke pabrik. Ia menyebutkan bahwa ia menikmati berjualan melalui perantara karena ia bisa mendapatkan penghasilan sekaligus orang lain juga mendapat penghasilan (“berbagi”). Ia sering berjualan di pasar dan meskipun keuntungannya tidak tinggi, ia tetap berhasil mendapatkan sejumlah uang yang cukup untuk memenuhi kebutuhan hidupnya.

Video preview

► Watch the interview →
Pak Iyan
Kab. Bogor
Ubi · sweet potato

When we first saw Pak Iyan, he showed a friendly smile and started our interview. We found out that his soil (to plant) is located near a river, and during the rainy season all the crops get swept away by floods and ruined. He also mentioned that he tries to do anything around the area to gain money just to feed himself (money only goes for food, as the amount he earns is less than enough for a living).

Indo ver

Saat pertama kali bertemu Pak Iyan, beliau tersenyum ramah dan memulai wawancara. Kami mengetahui bahwa karena lahannya (untuk tanam) terletak di dekat sungai, selama musim hujan semua tanaman hanyut terbawa banjir dan rusak. Beliau juga menyebutkan bahwa beliau berusaha melakukan apa saja di sekitar daerah tersebut untuk mendapatkan uang hanya untuk makan (uang hanya cukup untuk makanan karena penghasilannya tidak cukup untuk memenuhi kebutuhan hidup).

Video preview

► Watch the interview →
Ibu Ros standing among banana leaves
Ibu Ros
Kab. Bogor
Talas · taroJagung · corn

Ibu Ros is a dedicated farmer who enjoys selling. As we interviewed her, she mentioned that she owns a sembako shop where she sells her own products such as cassava and taro chips as well as some other products. She mentioned that during Ramadan she is able to gain the most profit, though her earnings vary week to week. However, due to the rainy season, most crops are not suitable to be sold to the public.

Indo ver

Ibu Ros adalah seorang petani yang berdedikasi dan senang berjualan. Saat kami mewawancarainya, ia menyebutkan bahwa ia memiliki toko sembako, tempat ia menjual produk-produknya sendiri seperti singkong dan keripik talas serta beberapa produk lainnya. Ia menyebutkan bahwa selama bulan Ramadhan ia mampu mendapatkan keuntungan terbesar, meskipun penghasilannya berbeda-beda setiap minggu. Namun, karena musim hujan sebagian besar hasil panen tidak cocok untuk dijual kepada masyarakat.

Video preview

► Watch the interview →
Pak Sahri
Pak Sahri
Kali Putih · Kab. Bogor
Padi · rice

As we interviewed Pak Sahri, we found out that he grows and sells rice (padi) to the Kali Putih community, distributing it through the local RT/RW rather than a tengkulak. He mentioned that although demand for his rice stays high, his market has never grown past that one community, which keeps him from selling more even when he has the supply. Because of this, he continues to sell at a price close to the general market rate, just to keep reaching the customers he already has.

Indo ver

Saat kami mewawancarai Pak Sahri, kami mengetahui bahwa ia menanam dan menjual beras (padi) kepada masyarakat Kali Putih, mendistribusikannya melalui RT/RW setempat, bukan melalui tengkulak. Ia menyebutkan bahwa meskipun permintaan terhadap berasnya tetap tinggi, pasarnya tidak pernah berkembang melampaui komunitas tersebut, sehingga ia tidak bisa menjual lebih banyak meskipun pasokannya tersedia. Karena itu, ia tetap menjual dengan harga yang mendekati harga pasar umum, sekadar untuk terus menjangkau pelanggan yang sudah ada.

Video preview

► Watch the interview →
Tengkulak / Middleman perspectives

The other side of the deal

Farmers aren’t the only ones with a stake in this system, so we also spoke with a tengkulak to hear how distribution looks from his side.

Pak Indrawan
Pak Indrawan
Rice middleman (tengkulak)

Rice trading runs in Pak Indrawan’s family — it’s the business he inherited. He buys padi from farmers in Indramayu, has it milled, then sells the rice on to traditional markets, earning his profit from the patokan (reference price) and the margin between what he pays and what he charges. From where he stands, a middleman isn’t the villain of the story: he’s the connection that gets a harvest to a market it couldn’t reach alone.

Indo ver

Usaha jual-beli beras merupakan bisnis keluarga yang diwariskan kepada Pak Indrawan. Ia membeli padi dari petani di Indramayu, menggilingnya, lalu menjual berasnya ke pasar tradisional, memperoleh keuntungan dari patokan (harga acuan) dan selisih antara harga beli dan harga jualnya. Menurutnya, seorang tengkulak bukanlah pihak yang harus disalahkan dalam cerita ini — ialah penghubung yang membawa hasil panen ke pasar yang tidak akan bisa dijangkau sendiri oleh petani.

Video preview

► Watch the interview →
Handles: rice (padi)Route: Indramayu farmers → mills → traditional markets
Kontak / Get in touch

Order, join, or ask.

Want to order produce, join as a farmer, or learn more about our research? Send us a message and a member of our team will reply.

Rice harvest workers in a Bogor field