Govt plans to limit shrimp imports

Govt plans to limit shrimp imports

Zakki P. Hakim, Jakarta

The Ministry of Industry and Trade unveiled proposals on Thursday
to tighten up the rules on shrimp imports, particularly from
countries affected by U.S. antidumping tariffs.

The proposed measures will focus on restricting imports to
those undertaken by shrimp processing companies, and requiring
the importers to have certificates of origin for the imported
shrimp, according to a document presented during a seminar on the
issue.

But senior ministry official Faiz Achmad said that a final
decision had yet to be made.

The Indonesian Fishing Industry Association (Gappindo)
recently complained of rising shrimp imports from countries like
China, Thailand, India and Vietnam -- all of which have been
affected by the U.S. antidumping tariffs. Following the
imposition of tariffs, shrimp from these countries have been
exported to the U.S. through Indonesia as a transshipment point.

But there are now growing fears that if this continues, the
U.S. will also impose antidumping tariffs on all shrimp coming
from Indonesia, something that would also hurt genuine local
exporters. If this were to happen, the local shrimp market would
suffer from oversupply, which in turn would put pressure on
prices and hurt local shrimp farmers.

Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Rokhmin Dahuri, who
had earlier proposed a temporary ban on imports starting next
year as farmers start their harvests, said he would support the
Ministry of Industry and Trade proposal.

But he said that any reexport of imported shrimp must follow
further processing here so as to provide added value.

According to figures from the Ministry of Industry and Trade,
last year Indonesia imported 2,621 tons of shrimp -- amounting to
only 0.55 percent of the country's total production of 478,847
tons.

But imports have started to accelerate this year, with the
import volume already having reached 2,600 tons in the first half
of the year, according to the ministry data.

Meanwhile, exports to the U.S. in the first four months of
this year reached 10,202 tons, compared to an average annual
export volume of 17,546 tons.

Shrimp is Indonesia's top export commodity in the agricultural
sector, producing earnings of US$2.45 billion and $2.59 billion
in 2001 and 2002 respectively.