Temanggung Regent Rejects Standardised Cigarette Packaging, Warns of 'Doomsday' for Tobacco Farmers
The Regent of Temanggung, Agus Setyawan, has rejected a plan to standardise cigarette packaging outlined in a draft Minister of Health regulation concerning health warnings and information on tobacco and electronic cigarette products. Agus argued that the proposed regulation would not only cause unrest among the people of Temanggung but would also destroy the tobacco ecosystem, which has long been a part of the community’s livelihood.
He made the statement during a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) on Synergy between Government, Industry, and Farmers in Building a Sustainable National Tobacco Ecosystem. “There is a lot of unrest among our farmer friends, workers, traders, and factory owners because they are plagued by regulatory uncertainty, including this derivative regulation of Government Regulation No. 28/2024. On behalf of Temanggung Regency, we reject and regret the drafting of this technical derivative regulation. This concerns the livelihood of the people, and certainly, tobacco farming in Temanggung will end,” Agus said, as quoted on Tuesday, July 7, 2026.
Temanggung tobacco, nicknamed ‘Green Gold’, is cultivated in seven production centres. The regency’s tobacco planting area ranges from 16,000 to 18,000 hectares annually, with a production capacity of around 12,000 tons of dry tobacco per year. Agus warned that if the regulation is passed, it would be a ‘doomsday’ for tobacco farmers.
He also expressed regret that the drafting process for the standardised packaging rules, which includes standardising fonts, shapes, and colours, was conducted unilaterally without fair and balanced involvement of farmers and other stakeholders in the tobacco ecosystem. “The tobacco community is always put last. This is because every regulatory discussion related to tobacco is one-sided; the draft document is already finished before we are invited. So we only find out at the end,” he revealed.
At the same forum, Agus Parmuji, Chairman of the National Board of the Indonesian Tobacco Farmers Association (DPN APTI), also lamented the Health Ministry’s unilateral approach to finalising the regulation, which directly impacts the livelihoods of the people of Temanggung. He noted that tobacco is not only a leading commodity but also a cultural part of the community around Mount Sumbing, Mount Sindoro, and the Prau Mountains.