InfoSAWIT, JAKARTA – The Ministry of Agriculture, through its Directorate General of Plantations, reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening the palm oil sector through land expansion and downstream industrial development.

Kuntoro Boga Andri, Director of Plantation Product Downstreaming, stated that the government aims to develop 2.3 million hectares of new palm oil plantations as part of the national energy security strategy.

“This development will consider socio-economic conditions and forest governance to ensure compliance with regulations,” he said.

He highlighted low productivity among smallholders as a key issue, with yields averaging 3.8 tons per hectare, compared to 5.2–6 tons per hectare in the private sector.

“Improving smallholder productivity is our main priority,” he noted.

He also emphasized the importance of downstreaming, noting that Indonesia’s palm oil exports—worth around Rp400–500 trillion annually—are still dominated by raw products like CPO.

“We still import derivative products such as margarine and cosmetics, indicating that added value remains limited,” he explained.

According to him, downstreaming could significantly increase value-added output, potentially multiplying returns many times over.

Meanwhile, the government is also addressing governance issues, including the legalization of plantations located in forest areas, covering around 4 million hectares currently under review. (T2)