Linking Farmer Knowledge and Learning to Agricultural Sustainability: A Study of Apple Farmers in Indonesia

Abstract

Apple farming in Indonesia is facing serious sustainability challenges. In Tutur-Pasuruan, only 20-30% of orchards remain. Despite this crisis, few studies have explored how farmers learn, build knowledge, and sustain their practices. Understanding their social learning processes is essential for developing sustainable agriculture. The research objectives were identifying farmers' learning methods, mapping key knowledge areas, and analyzing their linkages with sustainability outcomes. A transcendental phenomenological approach was used with 19 informants through in-depth interviews, observation, and documentation. Analyses were conducted using the NVivo-based Colaizzi method. The study identified 11 learning methods, with experiential (15.14%) and digital (12.12%) approaches as the most dominant. Farmers acquired knowledge in over 60 areas, grouped into nine categories, primarily related to farm management, cultivation, and soil. These learning outcomes contributed to four sustainability dimensions: social and innovation (26.5%), and economic and environmental (23.5%). The findings confirm that sustainability rests on a reflective and experiential collective learning system. This study recommends further research on integrating local knowledge with digital technology and policy design that supports the documentation and replication of farmer learning systems.