On Palm Oil, Indonesia Still Faces Challenges

The concept of sustainable development for palm oil plantations is one of the concerns of the Ministry of Agriculture. Information from the ditjenbun.pertanian.go.id website today shows that there is planning and realization of Sustainable Palm Oil Initiative (SPOI) activities covering five strategic components. In sequence, the five components are first, reinforcing the implementation of ISPO certification for farmers, particularly in the implementation of good agricultural practices (GAP) and environmental conservation. Second, reinforcing ISPO for forest conservation, increasing the conservation of biodiversity and mitigation, as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Third, facilitating mediation of issues/disputes and empowerment.Fourth, reinforcing the ISPO system and standards so that it can be recognized and obtain greater support and acceptance in society. Fifth, realizing national and provincial platforms to ensure transparency and promote sustainable palm oil.

Meanwhile, Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman’s notes at the 2015 Indonesia Palm Oil Conference (IPOC) in Bali on November 25 to 27, 2015 demonstrate that palm oil is a strategic commodity. (Read: Two Reasons Palm Oil is Not in the Intensive Care Unit).According to Amran, palm oil and its derivatives record an average of Rp 250 trillion in foreign exchange for Indonesia. “Organizationally, the palm oil industry is already strong,” he said. In the next section, the Indonesian Palm Oil Producers Association (Gapki), which was the organizer of the conference, demonstrated that by the end of 2014, production of palm oil in Indonesia reached 31.5 million tons. Of that amount, 21.7 million tons were exported.However, Ricky Avenzora, an environmental and forestry observer from the Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) warned in a press release yesterday that there are still challenges for Indonesia in relation to palm oil. Indonesia’s increased production of palm oil increases Indonesia’s opportunities to become a crucial country for producers of raw materials for food and pharmaceuticals. As a consequence, the large industrial countries like the United States and Europe become dependent on Indonesia. Ricky calculates that a 10 percent increase in palm oil production in Indonesia will make producers of raw materials for food and pharmaceuticals in the United States dependent by as much as 12 percent. Because of this, Ricky suggests that the United States has a tendency to be hostile towards the growth of palm oil in Indonesia. Furthermore, palm oil is a favorite product for renewable biofuel energy. Indonesia’s crucial role in relation to this renewable energy is thus more and more necessary.



Editor
: Josephus Primus



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