Universitas Andalas’ PKM-TKM Team Promotes Composite Corn Seed Innovation and Organic Fertilizer Processing in Support of SDG 2 and SDG 12

The PKM-TKM community service team from the Faculty of Agriculture at Universitas Andalas conducted an outreach visit to Nagari Simpang, Pasaman, on Saturday, July 26, 2025, to introduce sustainable farming practices through composite corn seed innovation and household waste processing into organic fertilizer. The initiative is most closely linked to SDG 2 on Zero Hunger and SDG 12 on Responsible Consumption and Production, as it combines efforts to strengthen food production with more sustainable waste management practices.

The program was led by Fitri Ekawati, a lecturer from the Department of Agronomy at the Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Andalas, who also served as the field supervisor for 20 students carrying out their community service program in the nagari from July 7 to August 18. The activity also involved three other lecturers: Prof. Ir. Irfan Suliansyah from the Department of Agronomy, Siti Nurhasanah from the Department of Public Health, and Yulistriani from the Department of Agribusiness. The event drew nearly 80 participants, including farmers, community leaders, village officials, Universitas Andalas KKN students, and KKN students from UIN Imam Bonjol Padang.

According to the organizers, the program was designed as a shared effort to help create a more prosperous Nagari Simpang, where most residents work in agriculture. The team emphasized that this goal could be pursued through the use of superior composite corn seeds and through better management of household waste, which has not yet been properly handled and can instead be processed into organic fertilizer. The activity was also intended to serve as a means of transferring practical knowledge and skills to the community in order to improve agricultural productivity while raising awareness of environmental management and health.

The outreach responded directly to two major local challenges identified in the nagari: waste disposal and the difficulty faced by corn farmers in obtaining hybrid corn seed, which residents described as both expensive and hard to access. The village head, Jumailis, welcomed the program and said the nagari remained open to knowledge transfer from academics to help build a more independent and prosperous community. He noted that waste remains a persistent issue, with some residents still disposing of household waste into rivers despite village efforts to provide free waste collection twice a week.

During the session, Prof. Irfan Suliansyah delivered material on composite corn and organic fertilizer as pathways toward food self-reliance and ecological balance. He explained that while composite corn may not yield as highly as hybrid corn, it is more adaptable to environmental conditions and allows farmers to reuse seeds from previous harvests for the next planting season. He also noted that hybrid corn generally requires high agricultural inputs, particularly inorganic fertilizers, and that excessive long-term use of such fertilizers can damage soil structure and texture. As a result, he encouraged a gradual transition toward organic fertilizer, including fertilizer made from household waste, to improve the physical, chemical, and biological quality of the soil.

Public health lecturer Siti Nurhasanah addressed the health risks associated with throwing waste into rivers, warning that the practice can contribute to water pollution and trigger diseases such as diarrhea, typhoid, cholera, dengue fever, dysentery, and skin disorders. She encouraged residents to separate organic and inorganic waste, process organic waste into fertilizer, and adopt the 3R approach of reducing, reusing, and recycling. She also highlighted the importance of cross-sector collaboration involving citizen cooperatives, the environmental office, and the health office for disease surveillance and sanitation education.

From the agribusiness perspective, Yulistriani discussed ways to increase farmers’ added value by optimizing supply chains and expanding market access. She said many farmers still sell their harvests to middlemen at low prices, leaving them with only minimal profits. To address this, she proposed shortening the supply chain through cooperative formation, product processing, marketplace technology, partnerships with industry, and collective logistics. She also encouraged wider market access through agribusiness e-commerce, product certification, halal labeling, better packaging, and stronger product branding.

The activity concluded with a practical demonstration by Universitas Andalas KKN students on how to process waste into organic fertilizer using compost bags. The community service team also handed over several innovation tools and materials, including an electric corn shelling machine, composite corn seeds, and compost bags. Overall, the program presented a community-based model that linked sustainable agriculture, waste utilization, and farmer empowerment in a single effort to strengthen local resilience.