Agriculture Minister Projects Surplus in Maize to Chicken Meat, Securely Facing El Niño

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Agriculture Minister (Mentan) and Head of the National Food Agency (Bapanas) Amran Sulaiman revealed that food commodities such as maize, sugar, chicken eggs, and chicken meat are projected to be in surplus by May 2026. He is confident that this surplus projection for these food commodities will enable Indonesia to face the El Niño phenomenon. “Food challenges are becoming increasingly complex, influenced by geopolitical dynamics and climate change. However, based on the national food balance projection until May 2026, strategic national food is in a surplus condition and relatively safe,” Amran stated during a working meeting with Commission IV of the DPR, quoted from the TVR Parlemen YouTube broadcast, Tuesday (7/4/2026). Furthermore, chicken meat is also projected to have a surplus of 837,000 tonnes, considering a supply projection of 2.52 million tonnes and demand of 1.68 million tonnes. Meanwhile, the national supply of chicken eggs is predicted to have a surplus of 423,000 tonnes based on availability projection of 3.16 million tonnes and demand of 2.73 million tonnes. As for maize, it is also projected to have a surplus of 4.35 million tonnes, considering a supply projection of 11.49 million tonnes and demand of 7.13 million tonnes. Thus, the stock is sufficient to meet the needs of Indonesian society for the next 10-11 months. “If El Niño occurs, our production will still be around 2 million tonnes per month. El Niño is estimated to last six months, while our preparation reaches 10-11 months. That means it’s safe,” Amran said.