Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia which experienced frequent rice shortages in the past several years is planning to export the commodity on account of an expected production surplus this year. "I agree to any policy to export rice. If our stocks are bigger than our need, why won't we export the staple," Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie said last week in response to a plan by the Trade Ministry to issue a regulation on rice export.

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Three domestic companies are ready to develop sago plantations in Riau and West Papua Provinces to meet demand for raw materials to make bioethanol as alternative energy, an Agriculture Ministry official said. The three companies were PT Nasional Timber, PT Nusa Ethanolasia and PT Austindo Nusantara Jaya, Director General of Plantations at the Agriculture Ministry Achmad Mangga Barani said on Friday.