Eco-labeling starts hurting textile exports

Eco-labeling starts hurting textile exports

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia may have already lost some of its
potential export markets for textiles and garments, the first
victims of the "eco-labeling" policy, State Minister of
Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja said yesterday.

Sarwono disclosed that 60 Indonesian textile exporters have
received questionnaires from foreign consultant companies, asking
about their policy towards protecting the environment.

Only 16 replied, and three of them have sought the help of the
Environmental Impact Management Agency (Bapedal), he told
reporters yesterday after meeting with President Soeharto at the
Bina Graha office.

Those who did not respond have simply lost their market and
those who answered wrongly also suffered, he said, adding that
Indonesian textile producers are now facing fierce competition
from India, Vietnam and China.

He said the consultants probably already knew about the
conditions in Indonesia and sent the questionnaires simply to
probe the companies' commitment to environmental protection.

Eco-labeling is the term used to describe the increasing trend
in developed countries to impose tight environmental restrictions
against imports. Products whose processing might involve
tampering with the environment are required to be labeled to
indicate that the manufacturers have taken all possible
precautions to preserve the environment.

Indonesia has established an independent eco-labeling body,
which is a non-governmental organization, headed by Emil Salim,
the former environmental minister, but the agency has become
preoccupied with the affairs of the timber industry.

"We're suggesting that the agency expand its activity beyond
timber," Sarwono said.

Europe has already subjected many products to eco-labeling,
for example by compelling refrigerators to be more energy
efficient, or washing machines to be designed solely for use with
environmentally friendly detergents.

These products must also stipulate that their components and
parts can be recycled.

Even tissues and toilet papers are also subject to
eco-labeling, he said.

Sarwono said that when it comes to eco-labeling, Indonesia is
trailing far behind many countries, including neighboring
Malaysia.

The number of Malaysian companies whose industrial products
already meet the ISO 9000 international standards reaches 300,
while Indonesia only has 16.

"We're not talking about the higher ISO 14000 which involves
the basic management on environmental aspects. We are not only
not ready for that, but many of us are not even aware that it
exists," he said. "If that's the way we work, how can we
compete?"

Unless companies get their act together in preserving the
environment, Indonesia could eventually be forced to simply rely
on its cheap labor, he said. "We'd become international hawkers."
(emb)