Sulawesi cacao output unaffected by fires

JAKARTA (JP): South Sulawesi's cacao output, which accounts for nearly half of Indonesia's total exports, has not been affected by the bush and forest fires raging in parts of the province, the local chapter of the Indonesian Cocoa Association said.

Chairman Cornelis Patty said in Ujungpandang Saturday that a fire at a private cocoa plantation in Mamuju regency had already been extinguished, Antara reported.

There were no other reports of fires affecting cacao plantations, including those that were run by smallholder farmers, in the province, Cornelis said.

Mamuju, Luwu and Polmas regencies were the biggest cacao producing areas so that any decline in output would have a big impact on South Sulawesi's total production, he said.

Minister of Agriculture Sjarifuddin Baharsjah said last week that fires which had hit some 173 plantations in Indonesia would probably have an impact on commodity supplies.

Cacao is South Sulawesi's main export.

Last year, 155,000 tons of the 323,000 tons of cacao Indonesia exported came from the province.

There are more than 130,000 hectares of cacao plantations in the province, mostly smallholder plantations, More than 170,000 farmers grow the crop.

Indonesia's cacao production was 330,000 tons last year making it the world's third biggest producer, after the Ivory Coast (1.12 million tons) and Ghana (404,000 tons). (08)