Agriculture Minister affirms Saudi poultry import ban does not impact Indonesia's domestic market strategy
Jakarta — Indonesia’s Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman has affirmed that Saudi Arabia’s ban on imports of Indonesian poultry and eggs will not impact national poultry sector marketing, as processed products remain permissible for export.
“It will have no impact,” Minister Amran stated while overseeing a poultry and derivative product export release ceremony to Japan, Singapore, and Timor Leste in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He characterised the policy as an opportunity to strengthen downstream industrialisation strategy—processing raw materials into value-added finished products before export. The Saudi market continues to accept processed poultry products from Indonesia, meaning export opportunities remain open and offer greater economic returns.
“The ban applies to fresh poultry but not processed products. We process them, which actually increases value significantly. That is sound business strategy,” Amran said.
The minister explained that exporting raw poultry commands lower prices than processed products such as nuggets or ready-to-eat meals. Through processing, product value can increase twofold or more compared to exporting fresh poultry as raw materials.
“If I export chicken at, say, Rp30,000 per kilogram, how many times higher is a finished product? Double. Which would you choose to export? In fact, we should be grateful because Saudi Arabia banning fresh poultry pushes us in the right direction,” Amran added.
He viewed the downstream industrialisation approach as aligned with President Prabowo Subianto’s direction to strengthen domestic industry competitiveness whilst driving business growth.
“This is precisely the President’s objective—to pursue downstream industrialisation. Processing raw materials into finished goods increases value by 100 percent, and that is the goal,” he affirmed.
Beyond the poultry sector, similar strategies are being applied to commodities such as cocoa and coconut to boost economic value through processing.
Amran emphasised that the policy must be understood holistically to avoid misperceptions about its impact on national trade. The government remains committed to encouraging businesses to capitalise on processed product export opportunities as a strategy to increase foreign exchange earnings and strengthen the structure of Indonesia’s livestock industry.
Indonesia is among 40 countries subject to Saudi Arabia’s total poultry import ban, alongside Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Germany, Iran, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Taiwan, South Korea, North Korea, Japan, and the United Kingdom, among others.
Partial bans have been imposed on certain provinces and cities in 16 countries, including Australia, the United States, Italy, Belgium, Bhutan, Poland, Togo, Denmark, Romania, Zimbabwe, France, the Philippines, Canada, Malaysia, Austria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Currently, Indonesian poultry and egg products can access the Saudi market only through specific processing methods, validated by health certificates. According to the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA), poultry meat and related products that have undergone heat treatment or other processing methods sufficient to eliminate Newcastle disease virus are exempt from the ban.
This process must be supported by health certificates issued by authorised officials in the country of origin and recognised by the SFDA.