Qurban Animal Trade Thrives Online in Indonesia amid Covid-19 Pandemic

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Not even the threat posed by the Covid-19 pandemic could stop Muslims in Indonesia from carrying on tradition as they embrace e-commerce to purchase sacrificial animals ahead of the celebration of Idul Adha this week.

Muslims in the country will celebrate Idul Adha (Islamic Day of Sacrifice) on July 31 following the isbat (confirmation meeting) led by Minister of Religious Affairs Fachrul Razi on Tuesday, July 21.

Tradition sees them going to farms or traders to see firsthand the sacrificial animals before buying them. Lockdown restrictions, however, have interrupted this practice, forcing many to go online to buy the qurban animals for the upcoming celebration.

One of the e-commerce platforms that is benefitting from the rise in online trade is Ternaknesia. The company’s chief executive officer, Dalu N. Kirom, said recently that despite the Covid-19 pandemic, it did not deter people’s intention to buy the sacrificial animals. Dalu said the demand has soared.

“Alhamdulillah (Thanks be to Allah), amid the pandemic the demand has increased about two-fold compared to before the pandemic,” he told Kontan.co.id. He noted they had to use promotional activities to pull the customers. 

The CEO added that currently 150 farmers from 130 cities across Indonesia sell sacrificial animals for Idul Adha through the service called Smart Qurban. Buyers simply select the city of domicile when buying their sacrificial animals. Delivery service is also available.

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In Ternaknesia, the price of a sheep ranges from 1.65 million rupiahs ($113) to 1.9 million rupiahs ($130), while a goat sells for up to 7 million rupiahs ($480). The price of a cow starts at 12.5 million rupiahs ($858).

Dalu hoped that the Covid-19 pandemic will not prevent the company from expanding its business to East Java this year. He is optimistic that the business will grow up to 20 percent in 2020.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s largest e-commerce platform Tokopedia also offers sacrificial animals. For the process of maintenance, slaughtering, and distribution of sacrificial animals, Tokopedia has collaborated with nine institutions of sacrificial animal management. They are Baznas, Dompet Dhuafa, Eco Qurban, PKPU Human Initiative, Inisiatif Zakat Indonesia (IZI), Lembaga Amil Zakat Nasional Al Azhar, NU Care-Lazisnu, Rumah Zakat, and Qurban Nusantara.

Head of Tokopedia Salam Garri Juanda told Kontan.co.id July 24 that all the partners have already registered with the Ministry of Religious Affairs and provided good standards for sacrificial animal services. The company did not elaborate on the number of transactions made in its marketplace.

Good news also comes from livestock farmers in East Java such as the Sumber Jaya cattle farm. In a statement made available to Kontan.co.id, East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa said the farmers in the province sold a total of 220 cows. Of the number, 145 were sold online.

(Writer: Venny Suryanto | Editors: Markus Sumartomjon, Yoga Sukmana)

Source: https://money.kompas.com/read/2020/07/25/200500126/penjualan-hewan-kurban-secara-online-kian-ramai.