{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1677124,
        "msgid": "agriculture-minister-wants-indonesias-sugar-industry-to-rise-from-the-grave-heres-how-1776167456",
        "date": "2026-04-14 17:40:17",
        "title": "Agriculture Minister Wants Indonesia's Sugar Industry to Rise from the Grave: Here's How",
        "author": "",
        "source": "CNBC",
        "tags": "",
        "topic": "Agriculture",
        "summary": "The Indonesian government, led by Agriculture Minister Sudaryono, aims to revive the nation's sugar industry by boosting sugarcane yield rates to levels comparable to the colonial era, when Indonesia was the world's second-largest sugar producer. Key strategies include improving seed quality with a Rp9.9 trillion budget over three years, rejuvenating crops, and expanding suitable land without harming the environment, potentially enabling self-sufficiency and lower sugar prices. Currently, low yields of 7-8% compared to Thailand's 11-12% force reliance on imports, but enhancing productivity could triple output and reduce dependency.",
        "content": "<p>The government is targeting a revival of national sugar production by\nrestoring sugarcane yield rates to those of the colonial era. During the\ncolonial period, Indonesia was once the world\u2019s second-largest sugar\nproducer after Cuba. In the past, Indonesia\u2019s sugar yield was even three\ntimes higher than current levels. Currently, the sugarcane yield is only\n7-8%, whereas neighbouring countries like Thailand have achieved 11-12%.\n\u201cIn the Dutch era, the yield was three times higher than now. It was\nvery high back then; why has it fluctuated now? We must pay attention to\nthat,\u201d said Agriculture Minister Sudaryono when met at the Parliamentary\nComplex in Jakarta on Tuesday (14\/4\/2026). He explained that the low\nyield is the main root problem in the current sugar sector. Yield\ndetermines how much sugar is produced from the milled sugarcane. The\nlower the yield, the less sugar farmers obtain, even if the volume of\nsugarcane is large. \u201cThe main issue, based on research and studies we\nhave conducted, is the low yield,\u201d he stated. According to him, this\ncondition makes national sugar production suboptimal, so Indonesia still\ndepends on imports. However, on the other hand, there is still great\npotential to increase domestic production. \u201cActually, our current\nposition is that sugar is insufficient. So we still import refined\nsugar. That means it\u2019s still lacking. If it\u2019s lacking, it means there is\nstill potential in the country for us to produce it ourselves,\u201d he\nclarified. Sudaryono emphasised that the key to restoring the glory of\nnational sugar lies in increasing productivity, particularly through\nimproving yield and expanding sugarcane land. \u201cSo the yield must be\nhigh, or we create new land,\u201d he said. To increase yield, the Ministry\nof Agriculture is promoting the use of superior seeds and rejuvenation\nof sugarcane plants through the ratoon dismantling programme. He\nmentioned that seed quality is a crucial factor that can directly boost\nproduction. \u201cLike it or not, not only in sugar, we\u2019re talking about all\ncrop varieties; good seeds do have an impact of 20%-30%,\u201d he explained.\n\u201cSo with the same treatment, as long as the seeds are good, whether\nrice, corn, sugarcane, whatever, as long as they are correct and\nwell-standardised, including oil palm, production can increase by\n20%-30%,\u201d Sudaryono continued. The government has allocated a large\nbudget to support improvements in seed quality. The total budget amounts\nto Rp9.9 trillion, disbursed gradually over three years. \u201cImagine, just\nfrom the seed quality component. Thus, President Prabowo has budgeted\nand given to the Ministry of Agriculture Rp9.9 trillion, divided over\nthree years. Last year Rp2.5 trillion, this year Rp5.5 trillion, and the\nrest next year,\u201d he elaborated. Besides seeds, the government also plans\nto open new land for sugarcane, while still considering environmental\naspects. \u201cThe second thing is, like it or not, we have to find new land\nsuitable for sugarcane, without disturbing the ecology, without clearing\nforests and so on,\u201d he said. Sudaryono stressed that if yield can be\nincreased back to near past levels, Indonesia would not only achieve\nsugar self-sufficiency but also potentially lower prices. \u201cIf Indonesia\ncan increase its yield high, back to the Dutch era for example, it\u2019s not\njust that we achieve sugar self-sufficiency. Even sugar prices can be\nlowered,\u201d he stated. He emphasised that the biggest challenge now is how\nto increase yield amid farmers\u2019 land limitations. \u201cSo like it or not,\nwhat we must do is increase the yield. Our yield can be said to be\nrelatively low, and we must improve it. We were once in a position far\nhigher, three times what it is now,\u201d Sudaryono concluded.<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/agriculture-minister-wants-indonesias-sugar-industry-to-rise-from-the-grave-heres-how-1776167456",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}