One-Stop Export Policy Sparks Sharp Drop in FFB Prices

The Indonesian government plans to mandate one-stop export for commodities, including palm oil, through PT Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia (DSI), sparking panic among palm oil farmers. In recent days, the Indonesian Palm Oil Farmers Union (SPKS) and the Indonesian Palm Oil Farmers Organisation Association (POPSI) reported that fresh fruit bunch (FFB) prices in key production areas have dropped to as low as Rp 1,500 per kilogram. SPKS chairman Sabarudin said the rapid price decline reflects negative market response. He warned that the one-stop export trade policy risks creating a monopsony. ‘The situation has worsened as several companies have halted purchases and suspended sales temporarily,’ Sabarudin said in a press release in Jakarta on Monday, 25 May 2026. SPKS urged the government to intervene immediately to address the price drop and stabilise the market to prevent significant losses for farmers. Sabarudin added that the one-stop export policy could impoverish palm oil farmers by enabling monopsonistic practices that suppress FFB prices. Around 40% of the nation’s palm oil supply comes from smallholder plantations, which heavily rely on stable prices. If the situation persists, Sabarudin warned, smallholder productivity would decline, threatening national palm oil supplies. ‘Farmers are still traumatised by the 2015 crisis when FFB prices plummeted below Rp 1,000 per kilogram. Many uprooted their palm trees and switched to other crops as they could no longer sustain themselves,’ Sabarudin said. He also argued the policy contradicts the government’s goal of strengthening the B50 biodiesel programme. Sabarudin added that if smallholder productivity drops due to reduced fertilisation and farmers abandoning palm oil, the national raw material supply for biodiesel could be compromised.