Floods inundate cocoa crops in S. Sulawesi

Floods inundate cocoa crops in S. Sulawesi

Floods have inundated some 6,000 hectares (14,826 acres) of cocoa plantations in Indonesia's main growing area of South Sulawesi, causing a grim outlook for the upcoming harvest, traders said on Wednesday.

Some traders put the number as high as 8,000 hectares.

Major floods triggered by days of torrential rains have hit Indonesia in the past 10 days, killing at least 65 people, swamping thousands of hectares of rice paddies and forcing hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate.

"I am just back from Palopo and Mamuju and it was very bad there. My estimation is 6,000 hectares were inundated by floods," said one trader in Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi province, some 1,300 kms (850 miles) to the northeast of Jakarta.

The trader was referring to two main growing areas in the province.

"Flooding in 6,000 hectares means that it could affect the production of 40,000 tons," he said.

"But how much it will affect output, we have to make further checks. All I can say is the rains had swept away many flowers and harvest can be delayed," he added.

South Sulawesi has the largest area of cocoa plantations in Indonesia with a total area of 134,000 hectares (331,000 acres).

Together with the provinces of Southeast and Central Sulawesi, it accounts for 75 percent of cocoa output in Indonesia, the world's third largest cocoa producer.

Main harvest in those areas normally starts around April and lasts through September.

The Indonesian Cocoa Association (Askindo) said the country's cocoa output was expected to fall by a further 10 to 15 percent in 2002 from 370,000 tons last year due to the pod borer pest infestation.

Traders said daily arrivals to main export port Makassar fell to a mere 70 tons on Wednesday from a normal number 100 tons. --Reuters