BPDP Highlights Sustainability as Key to Palm Oil Industry's Future

The Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency (BPDP) has stated that the future of Indonesia’s palm oil industry will be determined by the successful implementation of sustainability principles. Zaid Burhan Ibrahim, BPDP Director of Finance, Risk Management, General Affairs, and Compliance, said the sector must focus on increasing productivity, strengthening downstream processing, and fulfilling environmental and governance aspects to remain competitive in the global market.

Speaking during a discussion on sustainable palm oil in Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan, Zaid noted that the industry is no longer just about production and exports. He said the sector now encompasses economic, social, energy, environmental, and geopolitical dimensions, making sustainable management a necessity rather than a choice.

At the same forum, Yetty Yulianty, Director of Customs Facilities at the Directorate General of Customs and Excise, explained that the government is supporting downstream processing through bonded zone facilities. She clarified that these incentives are specifically aimed at intermediate and downstream companies to encourage value-added exports, and are not provided to upstream plantation firms. Goods entering bonded zones benefit from the suspension of import duties, exemption from import taxes, excise relief, and the non-collection of Value Added Tax and Sales Tax on Luxury Goods as long as they are used for production activities.