Commission VII of the Indonesian House of Representatives Stresses Collaboration to Prevent Layoffs and Strengthen Local Government Incentives

National Information – Commission VII of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI) has emphasised the importance of collaboration to prevent rising lay-offs amid the current geopolitical uncertainty. The collaboration should be conducted not only among government ministries/agencies and regional governments, but also with the supervisory bodies, namely the DPR.

‘In order to determine how to implement policy steps—Plan A, Plan B, Plan C—to minimise the impact of global uncertainty,’ said Erna Sari Dewi, head of Commission VII’s Working Visit Team, during a visit to PT GarudaFood Putra-Putri Jaya in Gresik, East Java, on Thursday, 5 March 2026.

As part of strengthening the national food and beverage industry, particularly the agro-based processed foods sub-sector and the manufacturing-based food products, Commission VII sees the need to conduct an on-site field visit to PT GarudaFood Putra-Putri Jaya in Driyorejo, Gresik Regency.

The company operates in East Java, focusing on biscuits and related products for domestic and export markets. Therefore, Commission VII also urged regional governments to continuously provide incentives, especially in the agricultural and plantation sectors, to support local raw materials for this food and beverage industry.

‘While we heard that bean planting is not the farmers’ favourite, it is about how local governments creatively provide incentives to farmers to support local raw materials,’ said the NasDem party politician.

He noted that the conflict in Iran and the Middle East could hinder supply and raise the logistics costs of raw materials for the food and beverage industry in Indonesia, particularly those imported from that region. Raw materials affected include cocoa derivatives, cereals/flour/starch products, dairy products, and modified starch.

The main impacts on the food and beverage industry include potential supply disruptions for imported raw materials such as cocoa and its derivatives, cereal-based products, flour or starch, and dairy derivatives. Plastics and packaging materials used for food packaging are also at risk.