Indonesia: Modern Broiler Learning Centre opens

Dutch participation in the project

The Dutch company Sommen Automation & Electronics BV developed the software and climate control units that will be used for improved monitoring and management of the MBLC.

The MBLC consists of 2 broiler houses with a forced ventilation system which will be used for training and demonstration purposes. The broiler houses are equipped with tunnel or ventilation including cooling. Both houses contain 2 tiers and 4 separated compartments which also can be used for applied research. In total, the broiler houses have the capacity for 16,400 birds.

Opening ceremony

The opening ceremony started with a welcome by Mr Yirhan (Director Poultry Equipment & plastic) of PT Medion. He stated that the construction of the MBLC is in line with the company’s mission. That is to add value for their stakeholders. He also thanked the people from the Dutch Embassy, Ministry of Agriculture, specialists from the Netherlands, and customers.

Objectives of the project

After the introduction, Frank Joosten explained more about the objectives and the activities of the DIFS-Live Project in Indonesia. DIFS-Live is a cooperation between the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture and the Dutch Embassy in Jakarta. Together they promote food security and private sector development in the Indonesian livestock sectors. The project focusses on the poultry and dairy sectors in West Java. Both sectors face challenges in terms of meeting the growing demand of urban consumers in an efficient and sustainable way. Dr Rick van Emous emphasised the benefits of mechanical ventilation under Indonesian circumstances. He explained that broilers are top athletes and that climate control is the key for success. The combination of a high temperature and humidity lead to heat stress in (older) birds. The only solution to solve this challenge is to increase the air speed on bird level. This really cools the birds with many benefits on production performance, welfare and sustainability. Mr van Emous ended with these Take Home Messages: “Closed houses are the future for the broiler industry in Indonesia” and “MBLC will be the centre of this transition.” The CEO of Sommen Automatisation Mr Erwin Sommen and Cilla Mulyadi explained the working principles of the Food Safety (FS) Software. The FS Software is an ICT-based farm monitoring and management tool. Real time data as well as historical technical and climate data can be used for training purposes and production improvement. Data can be manually entered on a website or sent automatically.

After the introduction, all attendees were driven to the MBLC. The official opening was carried out by Mr Yirhan Sim (PT Medion), Mr Frank Joosten (Advance Consulting), Mrs Ana Saleh (Dutch Embassy) and Dr Rick van Emous (Wageningen University & Research). They released the first day old chicks from the chicken box and put them in the brooding area. This was followed by a tour around the different broiler houses and supporting buildings of the MBLC.