Thanks to Jokowi, Indonesian Pineapples Now Conquer China
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Indonesian pineapple production surged throughout 2025, with exports also soaring, particularly to China.
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that national pineapple production reached 3.21 million tonnes, up 17.3% or an additional 474.1 thousand tonnes compared to 2024.
The increase in production was in line with the growing number of pineapple plants entering their harvest period.
Throughout 2025, the number of fruit-bearing plants reached 747.22 million clumps, an increase of 6.32% or around 44.45 million clumps compared to the previous year.
Production peaked in the second quarter of 2025, with harvests reaching 844.79 thousand tonnes from 593.49 million fruit-bearing plants.
By region, Lampung remains the nation’s pineapple heartland with production of 698.9 thousand tonnes, contributing 21.74% of total national output. The number of fruit-bearing plants in the province reached 178.73 million clumps.
East Java occupied second place with production of 506.41 thousand tonnes, or 15.75% of national production, whilst Riau ranked third with 349.61 thousand tonnes, roughly 10.88% of the national total.
Exports to China Surge
Not only has production strengthened, but Indonesia’s pineapple export performance has also continued to improve. The value of pineapple exports throughout 2025 reached US$334.67 million, or around Rp 6 trillion (US$1 = Rp 18,000). This figure rose 5.91%, or roughly US$18.69 million, compared to the previous year.
The United States remains the largest market for Indonesian pineapples, with export values reaching US$88.89 million, equivalent to 59.36 thousand tonnes. This was followed by the Netherlands at US$34.44 million (17.43 thousand tonnes) and China at US$31.60 million (26.63 thousand tonnes).
China’s entry into the top three destinations for Indonesian pineapple exports is welcome news.
BPS data shows that exports to China had never ranked among the top three before 2024. China has now even displaced Spain as a major destination for pineapple exports.
The surge in pineapple exports to China is a sweet result of the trade agreement between the two countries.
Notably, pineapples were specifically mentioned in the China-Indonesia cooperation agreement struck during former President Joko Widodo’s visit to China in July 2022.
One of the key agreements approved by President Jokowi and President Xi Jinping was the export of fresh Indonesian pineapples to Beijing.
The importance of pineapples in the China-Indonesia economic agreement was reflected in the two countries’ bilateral Joint Press Statement. Pineapples were specifically mentioned in the bilateral statement when Jokowi and Xi Jinping met on Tuesday, 26 July 2022.
“During the visit, the two countries signed cooperation documents in the fields of vaccine development and research, green economic development, strengthening customs information, capacity-building in cyber security and maritime affairs, and the importation of Indonesian pineapples,” the statement read.
Three years after that agreement, pineapple exports to China are now flowing steadily. Indonesian pineapples compete with the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and Costa Rica in the Chinese market.
Meanwhile, Indonesia’s pineapple imports remain very small. Throughout 2025, import values reached only US$350.65 thousand, although in percentage terms they leapt 140.6% compared to the previous year.
Austria was the largest supplier of pineapples to Indonesia with imports valued at US$59.88 thousand, followed by Thailand at US$50.79 thousand and China at US$21.29 thousand.