Coconut Becomes a Leading Export Commodity

Coconut has now become one of the leading commodities in Indonesia. This was conveyed by Expert Staff to the Minister for Macroeconomics at the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs, Rulli Nuryanto.

“Coconut commodities contribute to the country’s foreign exchange earnings, provide employment opportunities, fulfill domestic consumption needs, and are raw materials for various domestic industries.” said Rulli in his statement (24/09/2023).

According to Republika.co.id, based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), Indonesia’s coconut production will reach 2.85 million tonnes in 2021. This number has increased by 1.47 percent compared to the previous year, namely 2.81 million tonnes.

Meanwhile, data from the Ministry of Agriculture in 2022 explains that the largest contribution to coconut exports comes from derivative products in the form of semi-finished coconut oil. The contribution of these derivative products reached 384 million US dollars or 30.21 percent of Indonesia’s total coconut commodity exports.

Rulli said there were still challenges being faced in efforts to increase coconut productivity in Indonesia. These challenges are generally related to old coconut plants, pest and disease attacks, land conversion and financial aspects for farmers.

“Currently, the government is encouraging downstream program which is not only limited to mineral commodities. “But also non-mineral commodities such as coconut, seaweed, palm oil and other potential commodities,” he explained.

Support for this downstream program is carried out by the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs by building a Joint Production House or factory sharing for processed coconut. This Joint Production House will be managed by the Cooperative and is located in South Minahasa Regency, North Sulawesi.

“One strategy is through cooperatives.  Coconut Farmers will join a cooperative which will then absorb coconut products from farmers. It will be processed  and sold to the market,” added Rulli.