LPDB Oversees Sugarcane Downstreaming, Cooperatives Take Strategic Role in National Sugar Industry
The Indonesian government is accelerating efforts to achieve national sugar self-sufficiency by strengthening the role of cooperatives within the sugar industry business chain. The Minister of Cooperatives, Ferry Juliantono, emphasised that cooperatives must become primary players in production, processing, and distribution to support targets for reducing imports and increasing domestic sugar production.
This commitment was highlighted by Ferry during the signing of a strategic cooperation agreement between Koperasi Konsumen KANA Lautan Berkat, Koperasi Pemasaran Putra Harapan Jaya Kediri, and PT Indogula Jayabaya in Kediri, East Java, on Saturday, 6 June 2026. The partnership is part of a broader effort to strengthen the national sugar industry ecosystem based on cooperatives, connecting sugarcane farmers, cooperatives, processing industries, and marketing networks into a single integrated upstream-to-downstream business chain.
Accompanying the Minister of Cooperatives at the event were Henra Saragih, Deputy for Institutional and Digitalisation of Cooperatives at the Ministry of Cooperatives; the Special Staff for Harmonisation and Ecosystem Collaboration; and Krisdianto, President Director of LPDB Koperasi.
In his address, Ferry Juliantano asserted that the partnership between cooperatives and processing industries is part of the government’s strategy to strengthen agricultural downstreaming and accelerate national sugar self-sufficiency. According to Ferry, cooperatives must ‘level up’ and move beyond focusing solely on financing to becoming directly involved in production and processing activities that generate greater added value.
“This cooperation demonstrates that cooperatives are capable of being primary actors in the production, distribution, and downstreaming sectors to strengthen the people’s economy. Cooperatives need to be continuously encouraged so that they do not only operate in the financing sector but also play a role in production, processing, and distribution,” said Ferry Juliantono.
He added that the government is currently implementing strategies to reduce dependence on sugar imports while simultaneously increasing domestic production capacity. “To achieve sugar self-sufficiency in accordance with the President’s directives, we will reduce sugar imports and, on the other hand, boost national sugar production,” he concluded.