Indonesia has long been known as an agricultural country or a country whose economy is based on the agricultural sector. This is evidenced by the agricultural sector which is one of the sectors that continues to grow during the pandemic. As the second largest sector after the manufacturing sector, the agricultural sector is resilient and consistently grows by 0.38% in Q2/2021, and its growth contribution reaches 2.19% to GDP.
In addition, the Statistics Indonesia (BPS) stated that the value of agricultural exports for the January-August 2021 period experienced positive growth, namely 7.52% (YoY). Total exports in the agricultural sector as a whole from January to August 2021 reached USD 2.58 billion and contributed 1.82% to Indonesia’s total exports.
The agricultural commodities that are superior and have great potential in the export market are as follows:
- Vegetables and Fruits
The realization value of fruit exports for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 389.9 million with five main export destination countries, namely China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan. Meanwhile, the realized value of vegetable exports for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 16.65 million with five main export destinations, namely Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, China and the Philippines. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for vegetables and fruits from within the country and abroad has increased quite significantly. This is certainly a great opportunity for business players and fruit and vegetable farmers to be able to meet domestic and foreign market demands.
- Coffee
Another commodity that has the potential to be exported is coffee, be it for the Robusta or Arabica types. The realized value of coffee exports for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 337.82 million with five main export destinations, namely the USA, Egypt, Japan, Malaysia and Italy.
- Tobacco
Tobacco and tobacco products have long been one of the biggest contributors to the Indonesian economy, one of which is through exports. The realization of the value of tobacco exports for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 20.69 million with five main export destinations, namely Germany, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, the Dominican Republic and China.
- Cocoa Beans
Indonesia is one of the largest cocoa bean producers in the world, where Indonesia is ranked third. The realization of the export value of Cocoa Beans for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 22.39 million with five main export destinations, namely Malaysia, the Philippines, USA, Japan and Germany.
- Palm oil
Currently, Indonesia is the country with the first rank as the largest exporter of palm oil in the world. The realization of the export value of palm oil for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 12.30 billion with five main export destinations, namely China, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, USA and Bangladesh.
- Rubber sap and the like
Indonesia as a country that has a very large land area certainly has great potential to continue to develop rubber latex products. The realization of the export value of rubber latex and the like for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 30.86 million with five main export destinations, namely India, Vietnam, China, Singapore and Bangladesh.
- Black Pepper
Another commodity with great potential for export is black pepper. The realization of the export value of black pepper for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 22.76 million with five main export destinations, namely the USA, China, Vietnam, India and the Netherlands.
- Spices and aromatic medicinal plants
Spices and aromatic medicinal plants have become commodities that can be exported from Indonesia since the era of European colonialism hundreds of years ago. Usually exported include ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, cloves and so on. The realization of the export value of spices and aromatic medicinal plants for the period January – June 2021 was recorded at USD 389.19 million with five main export destinations, namely Thailand, China, India, USA and Bangladesh.
- Agarwood
Indonesia is listed as the largest agarwood exporting country in the world and North Kalimantan is the largest contributor of agarwood exported by Indonesia. The realization of the export value of agarwood for the January – June 2021 period was recorded at USD 7.15 million with five main export destinations, namely Saudi Arabia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, South Korea and Taiwan.
- Ornamental Plants
There is no doubt that Indonesia has a very rich biodiversity, including about 173 types of ornamental plants with great potential in the export market. The realization of the export value of ornamental plants for the period January – June 2021 was recorded at USD 980.8 thousand with five main export destinations, namely Japan, Australia, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore.
In addition to the ten commodities mentioned above, of course, there are many other commodities that certainly have opportunities and potential in the international arena, considering Indonesia’s very rich resources in the agricultural sector. This potential must continue to be explored and encouraged in order to improve the welfare of farmers, the regional economy, the national economy and even be able to increase the country’s foreign exchange through exports.
