RJOAS January 2025
by Hassan Dandi, Baruwadi Mahludin, Sahara La Ode (Gorontalo State University, Gorontalo, Indonesia)
Swallow Nest is an animal food product which is included in a livestock commodity. This product is produced through Swallow farming efforts in rural and urban areas. The purpose of this study was to analyze public perceptions of the Swallow farming development problem in Gorontalo City. The study was conducted through a survey method with 100 respondents around the Swallow House. Data were collected by distributing questionnaires to respondents using the Likert Scale and then analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results of the study showed that the problems of Swallow farming development can be seen in two aspects or perspectives of the problem, which are the Swallow House and Swallows. The level of agreement on the problem in the Swallow House aspect was 64.46% and the Swallow aspect was 46.32%. The biggest problems with the Swallow House were in the indicator of the Swallow calling device which made a loud noise (83.80%), building construction that was prone to collapse (74.60%), and reducing the beauty of the city (74.40%). The public perceived that Swallow farming efforts in Gorontalo City caused various problems so that they needed to be developed in accordance with central government regulations and regional regulations.
Indonesia has a lot of natural resources and great potential to improve people's welfare through the management of natural biological resources. One of these potentials is the Swallow's Nest commodity produced through Swallow cultivation. This commodity is a raw material for food products and health supplements that have high economic value. Swallow's Nest can be the key to developing the economy of local communities.
As the largest producer of Swallow's Nest in the world, Indonesia produces 75% of the Swallow's Nest spread throughout the world (PKH Directorial Decree No. 1237 of 2022). Home production reaches 98% and controls the world market supply because of its clean, whiter, and not so thick shape. This commodity has a fluctuating price. The price of white home Swallow's Nest at the exporter level reaches 30 - 40 million rupiah per kilogram, while at the farmer level before being washed it is around 12 - 15 million rupiah per kilogram (Bitpronak Directoral Decree No. 29016 of 2021).
The people of Gorontalo City are developing Swallow's Nest cultivation as a side business to produce Swallow's Nest. This activity is supported by the central and regional governments through programs in related agencies. The trend of certification of domestic traffic expenditure of Swallow's Nest from Gorontalo Province continues to increase, in 2018 it was recorded at 2.2 tons, in 2019 it increased to 3.9 tons, and in 2020 the total volume of certified Swallow's Nest has reached 4.1 tons (Antaranews.com, 2020).
The potential for Regional Original Income from Swallow's Nest in Gorontalo City is quite promising, considering several factors that support this industry, such as the tropical climate which is suitable for swallows. High market demand for Swallow's Nest can increase its economic value. The local government provides support in the form of regulations that facilitate its cultivation and marketing so that it can increase income.
The development of Swallow's Nest cultivation in the public society faces several obstacles, such as determining the location of cultivation and the construction of Swallow's Nest Houses that have not been properly arranged so that they disturb the public society around the building. Visually, Swallow's House can disrupt the appearance of the city because it is built haphazardly and is in the form of a towering box.
Other problems are the noisy and noisy sound from the Swallow caller, the Swallow House building that blocks air circulation, and Swallow droppings that can harm public health. Potential problems can also occur in building permits. Based on these problems, research is needed to analyze public perceptions of the problems of developing Swallow cultivation in Gorontalo City.
This research was conducted in the Gorontalo City area. The research location was chosen considering that Gorontalo City is one of the areas in Gorontalo Province that develops Swallow cultivation and has 108 Swallow Houses (Gorontalo Province Agriculture Service, 2023). The research activities were carried out for two months, which is from August to September 2024.
This research uses a survey method, which is one of the quantitative research methods. The research was conducted with a descriptive approach, such as an approach that attempts to create a systematic and factual description or picture of the facts being studied.
The population in this study was the people of Gorontalo City which is the location for the development of Swallow cultivation. All sub-districts are developing Swallow cultivation so that the sampling technique is carried out in stages starting from the sub-district, village, to the public society around the Swallow House.
The area of Gorontalo City stretches from East to West. The sample sub-districts were determined using purposive sampling by considering the division of geographical areas, such as sub-districts in the Eastern, Central and Western regions which have the most Swallow Houses, as described in Table 1.
The determination of sample villages was done intentionally with the consideration that the village that has the most Swallow Houses in each sample sub-district. The description of the determination of sample villages can be seen in Table 2.
The sample in this study were members of the public society or residents in the sample sub-district who were selected intentionally with consideration, namely residents who live within a radius of 100 m from the Swallow House building. The description of the population of the sample sub-district can be seen in Table 3.
Based on population statistics in the sample sub-district, the minimum sample size can be determined. The minimum sample size is calculated using the Yamane formula (Sugiyono, 2022). The minimum sample size was 99 people which was rounded up to 100 people. The number of samples in each sample sub-district was then determined proportionally. The composition of the samples in each sample sub-district is presented in Table 4.
The data collected consists of secondary data and primary data. Data collection is carried out through observation, interviews, questionnaires, and documentation. Primary data comes directly from samples or respondents. Secondary data collection is carried out through documentation of documents from related agencies, namely: the Animal Husbandry and Animal Health Division (PKH Division) of the Agriculture Service, and the Food Service.
Descriptive statistical analysis is used to analyze public perceptions of the problems of developing Swallow cultivation in Gorontalo City. The distribution of the collected data is then tabulated, processed, and then displayed in the form of tables, diagrams, or graphs according to the calculation of frequency, average, and percentage.
The Likert scale is used to measure respondents' attitudes, such as perceptions of the problems of developing Swallow cultivation. The attitude scale is arranged with a gradation ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. Qualitative statements are quantified by giving a score of 1 - 5, which are: Absolutely Agree (AA) – 5; Agree (A) – 4; Neutral (N) – 3; Disagree (D) – 2; Absolutely Disagree (AD) – 1.
The score of each item is obtained from the multiplication of the score options 1 - 5 with the number of respondents. The total ideal score of all items is obtained from the multiplication of the highest score with the number of respondents, so that 5 x 100 = 500 is obtained. The results of the next score calculation can be described through a continuous line, as in Figure 1. The percentage of the level of agreement on the variable is obtained from the calculation of the total item score divided by the total ideal score multiplied by 100%.
Perception is the process of receiving, processing, and interpreting information received by the five senses through the ability to see, hear, smell, taste, and feel to understand the facts. This is influenced by knowledge and experience of the stimuli received by the five senses (Setiadi, 2013). A person's perception of something or a situation can be different from others due to the influence of factors such as culture, personality, and individual background.
Individual perception of an object can be subjective so that to find out the perception of the public society in an area requires a scientific research study. Public society perception of the problem of developing Swallow cultivation can be seen in two aspects or perspectives of the problem, namely the Swallow House and Swallow.
Swallow Houses have various problems in the public society environment. Some indicators of problems related to Swallow Houses, such as: the caller makes a loud noise; blocks light and air circulation; reduces the beauty of the city; causes waste; ignores building permits; buildings are easily broken; buildings become nests for insects.
Description of aspects of Swallow Houses in public perception of the problems of developing Swallow Cultivation in areas with the most Swallow Houses in Gorontalo City can be seen in Table 5.
Table 5 shows that based on the total score of the public perception criteria of 500, the highest problem score of 419 with an agreement level of 83.80% is found in the indicator that the swallow caller makes a noisy sound. The lowest score of 233 with an agreement level of 46.60% is found in the indicator that the Swallow House blocks light and air circulation.
Based on Figure 2, it is known that the average score for the Swallow House aspect is 322, which indicates that the Swallow House aspect is in the Agree gradation. The approval level of 64.46% shows that the public agrees that the Swallow House building causes problems in the development of Swallow cultivation in Gorontalo City. Yusrizal et al, (2013) stated that the sound of a swallow calling device that exceeds the noise threshold can cause psychological disorders, such as headaches, hearing loss, lack of concentration, emotional disorders and stress. Dark, damp and dirty Swallow House buildings can become nests for insects such as mosquitoes and cockroaches, even mice and other pests (Hara et al, 2021).
The level of public society agreement on the aspect of the Swallow House means that the construction of the Swallow House needs to follow the regulations of the central and regional governments so as not to cause social conflict and economic losses in the public society. Regulations in the form of regional regulations can include permits, both business and building permits.
The Swallow Bird aspect has several indicators of problems in the residential environment of the public society. Indicators of problems directly related to Swallows in this study are: causes water pollution; triggers of the disease; causes unpleasant odors; causes air pollution; triggers of the emergence of predatory animals.
The aspect of Swallow in public perception regarding the problems of developing Swallow cultivation in areas with the most Swallow Houses in Gorontalo City is presented in Table 6.
Description of Table 6 shows that based on the total score of the public perception criteria, which is 500, the highest problem score of 257 with an agreement level of 51.40% is in the indicator of Swallow Bird droppings spread in the air can cause air pollution. The lowest score of 172 with an agreement level of 34.40% is in the indicator that Swallow Birds can trigger the emergence of predatory animals such as snakes and owls (Hakim et al., 2023). The continuous line of the Swallow Bird Aspect score is presented in Figure 3.
Based on Figure 3, the average score of the Swallow aspect is 232, which indicates that the Swallow aspect is in the Neutral gradation. The level of agreement of 46.32% illustrates that in the development of Swallow cultivation in Gorontalo City, the public society assumes that Swallow can or do not cause problems. This means that Swallow cultivation in Gorontalo City is still feasible to be developed in accordance with regulations that still consider the safety and comfort of the surrounding public society.
Based on the description of the research results, it can be concluded that the problems of developing Swallow cultivation can be seen in two aspects or perspectives of the problem, such as Swallow Houses and Swallow. The level of problems in the Swallow House aspect is greater than the Swallow aspect. The biggest problems with Swallow Houses are in the indicators of Swallow calling devices that make noisy sounds, building construction that is prone to collapse, and ignoring the beauty of the city. The public society perceives that Swallow cultivation in Gorontalo City causes various problems so that it needs to be developed according to central government regulations and regional regulations so as not to cause social conflict and economic losses in the public society. Public society perceptions of Swallow cultivation can be used as a consideration for local governments in making policies that can accommodate the interests of Swallow Nest entrepreneurs and the surrounding public society.
Original paper, i.e. Figures, Tables, References, and Authors' Contacts available at http://rjoas.com/issue-2025-01/article_09.pdf