Jakarta – The Ministry of Agriculture, through the Surabaya Agricultural Quarantine, exported 7 coffee containers containing 134 tons to Poti, Georgia. The exported robusta coffee has an economic value of IDR 134 billion.
Head of the Agricultural Quarantine Agency (Barantan) Ali Jamil, who was also present when releasing coffee exports, said he had harmonized quarantine regulations in new export destination countries.
Jamil also said that his steps were in accordance with the instructions of the Minister of Agriculture to seek breakthroughs in exports and access to agricultural commodities.
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“We are encouraging new market access. This is part of Barantan’s strategic efforts to increase and accelerate exports of agricultural commodities,” said Jamil in a statement Thursday (13/6/2019).
He also explained four strategic efforts made to encourage exports. First, increase the number of exporters, especially among millennials. Second, commodity diversification with a minimum of semi-finished products.
He gave the example of dried scorpions, a commodity from East Java which has penetrated the South Korean market. Throughout 2019 alone, 150 kg of dried scorpions were exported with an economic value of IDR 3.75 billion.
“Or pea shoots to Taiwan and there are still many new products with big export opportunities,” he said.
Jamil continued, the third strategic effort is to increase the frequency of deliveries of agricultural commodities and the fourth is to increase the volume of commodities.
Head of the Surabaya Agricultural Quarantine Center, Musyaffak Fauzi, reported that the average export certification in his area for plant commodities was 120 times per day and animal commodities 24 times per day.
Musyaffak reported that the export value on June 10-11 for plant and animal commodities reached 111.92 billion.
He also added that the potential for superior agricultural commodities from East Java is very large and has been able to contribute quite significantly to GDP. For example, in the January-May 2019 period, the animal export value was recorded at 4.8 trillion and the plant export value was 14 trillion.
According to Musyaffak, the Surabaya Agricultural Quarantine also destroyed illegal agricultural commodities worth 286 million rupiah, agricultural commodities or carriers of quarantine animal pests (HPHK), and quarantine plant pest organisms (OPTK).
Musyaffak continued, this culling was carried out because it violated articles 5 and 6 of Law Number 16 of 1992 concerning Animal, Fish and Plant Quarantine.
“Apart from providing a deterrent effect to perpetrators, it is also to uphold the law and government authority,” he concluded.
(ega/hns)
