Monagro Kimia to export 40% of its production

Monagro Kimia to export 40% of its production

JAKARTA (JP): Herbicide and pesticide producer PT Monagro
Kimia announced on Tuesday that it planned to export 23 million
liters, or 40 percent, of its production this year.

The company's country sales manager, Tommy Sutomo, said this
year's export volume would increase 25 percent from 18.5 million
liters last year.

"The export increase is due to the company's increased
production capacity. We are exporting to Japan, Thailand, South
Korea, China and Australia," Tommy said after a ceremony marking
the completion of the company's production expansion project.

PT Monagro Kimia is wholly owned by U.S. giant chemical
company Monsanto Co. The company, which began operating in
Indonesia in 1987, produces popular herbicides and pesticides
such as Polaris, Roundup and Spark, which can be used for rice
and hard crops.

The company injected US$4.4 million in 1997 to boost its
production capacity.

Tommy said the company's total sales this year were expected
to drop 20 percent due to a decline in local demand.

"We saw a decline of about 50 percent in the January to April
period this year. But starting in May, our sales improved again
due to increasing international prices of estate crops such as
cocoa, coffee and palm oil," he said.

Tommy said increases in the cost of raw materials since last
year had forced the company to raise the price of its products.

Company sales should recover by the beginning of next year due
to the government's new policies aimed at helping farmers to
boost the country's production of agricultural commodities, he
said.

At the ceremony, Monagro donated 20 tons of Polaris herbicide
worth Rp 600 million and $20,000 in cash to Minister of
Agriculture Soleh Solahuddin to be distributed to farmers. (gis)