{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1785014,
        "msgid": "rupiah-weakens-and-soybean-prices-rise-leaving-tofu-producers-struggling-1780824468",
        "date": "2026-06-04 20:01:32",
        "title": "Rupiah Weakens and Soybean Prices Rise, Leaving Tofu Producers Struggling",
        "author": "Satria K Yudha",
        "source": "REPUBLIKA",
        "tags": "",
        "topic": "Economy",
        "summary": "The continuous depreciation of the rupiah is placing significant pressure on Indonesia's small-scale food industries, particularly tofu producers. Rising costs of imported soybeans and essential packaging materials are eroding profit margins as producers struggle to raise selling prices amidst stagnant consumer purchasing power.",
        "content": "<p>The ongoing weakening of the rupiah is impacting the kitchens of the\nnation\u2019s food industries. One of the sectors most affected is tofu\nproducers, who rely heavily on imported soybean supplies as their\nprimary raw material.<\/p>\n<p>The rise in soybean prices over recent months has significantly\neroded the profit margins of tofu producers. Simultaneously, business\nowners face a dilemma, as it is difficult to increase selling prices\ngiven that public purchasing power has not yet fully recovered.<\/p>\n<p>This situation is being experienced by Sutisna, the owner of the NN\nBandung Tofu Factory in the Cilodong area, Depok, West Java. According\nto him, production cost pressures stem not only from the rising price of\nsoybeans but also from various supporting materials such as packaging\nplastic, salt, and spices.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith the increase in the price of soybeans and almost all other raw\nmaterials\u2014from plastic to salt and turmeric\u2014it automatically results in\nthinning profit margins,\u201d Sutisna stated during a conversation at the NN\nBandung Tofu Factory in Cilodong, Depok, on Wednesday (4\/6\/2026).<\/p>\n<p>This phenomenon illustrates how the weakening of the rupiah is being\nfelt directly within the real sector. Unlike local commodities, the\nIndonesian tofu industry remains highly dependent on imported soybeans;\nconsequently, almost every increase in the US dollar exchange rate leads\nto higher production costs.<\/p>\n<p>Data from the Ministry of Agriculture shows that national soybean\nrequirements reach approximately 3 million tonnes per year. However,\ndomestic production remains far from sufficient, with more than 80 per\ncent of the demand met through imports. In recent years, Indonesia\u2019s\nsoybean import volume has ranged between 2.4 million and 2.7 million\ntonnes per year, with the majority originating from the United States\nand Brazil.<\/p>\n<p>This high level of import dependency makes the tofu and tempeh\nindustries one of the sectors most sensitive to fluctuations in the\nrupiah exchange rate. When the rupiah weakens, the price of soybeans\npurchased by importers automatically increases, even if international\ncommodity prices remain relatively stable.<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/rupiah-weakens-and-soybean-prices-rise-leaving-tofu-producers-struggling-1780824468",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}