Indonesian blue crabs clear US standards until 2029, Ministry
The ministry’s Acting Director General for Competitiveness Strengthening of Marine and Fishery Products (PDSPKP), Machmud, here on Tuesday said the recognition was granted by the US authorities through National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries.
NOAA Fisheries has conducted assessment on Indonesia’s blue swimming crab fishery management system as being equivalent to its regulations, particularly regarding the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and bycatch control.
“Initially, blue swimming crab caught using gillnets was prohibited from being exported to the US. In order to differentiate it from those that have obtained a comparability finding, then the exports were required to use additional certification in the form of a Certificate of Admissibility (COA),” Machmud explained.
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With the comparability findings, the requirement for additional COA certification for Indonesian blue swimming crab exporters and importers in the US is officially eliminated.
Meanwhile, the Marketing Director of the Directorate General of PDSPKP, Erwin Dwiyana, said the achievement stemmed from intensive coordination efforts carried out since late 2025, including responses to the US government’s review of several exporting countries.
This effort involved various parties, including the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), the Indonesian Crab Management Association (APRI), several non-governmental organisations, and the Indonesian Embassy in Washington, D.C.
He explained that a lawsuit filed by the National Fisheries Institute (NFI) and seafood importers in the US on October 2025, resulted in a temporary suspension of the gillnet crab export ban for 180 days, while also opening the way for a review of the comparability findings.
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The ministry then actively prepared technical materials and responded to requests for information from the US authorities since November 2025 to April 2026, until Indonesia was finally declared to have met the required standards.
The US is a major market for Indonesian swimming crabs, with an average export value of US$321 million over the past three years or approximately 16.6 percent of Indonesia’s total fishery product exports to the country.
According to Dwiyana, this decision also saved a potential export value of around US$80 million or approximately 25 percent of total swimming crab exports to the US, while also allowing fishermen, particularly those using gillnets, to resume their operations in accordance with applicable regulations.
He expressed hope that the removal of the additional certification requirement would not only preserve, but further strengthen the competitiveness of Indonesian swimming crabs in the US market.
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Translator: Shofi Ayudiana, Resinta Sulistiyandari