Mutuagung gets FTO certification

JP/oby

JAKARTA (JP): The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery has certified Indonesian firm PT Mutuagung Lestari to test Indonesian agricultural export products to Japan.

Mutuagung technical director Arifin Lambaga (right) said yesterday that the company was the first in Asia to be awarded by the Japanese government with Foreign Testing Organization (FTO) certification. It received the certificate on Feb. 21 in Osaka.

Indonesia is the fourth country to get FTO certification after the United States, Canada and Norway.

With FTO certification, Mutuagung is entitled to issue Japanese Agricultural Standard labels to domestic companies.

Japan requires all products for export to the country to meet the standard.

Arifin was accompanied by company president commissioner Sidharto Sunarto (center), and the head of accreditation and institutional relation division at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Nuraisah (left).

Arifin said Mutuagung will first focus on certifying plywood and other timber-related industries.

Japan is the largest market for Indonesia's plywood, receiving 3.5 million cubic meters of the total 8.5 million cubic meters Indonesia exported last year. (jsk)