Industry Ministry Supports Sugar Imports

Jakarta (Antara Bali) - The Ministry of Industry supports the issuance of a license to import raw sugar to meet the need of domestic beverage and food industries, a senior official said.

"The Ministry of Trade has allowed the importation of 600 thousand tons of raw sugar to meet the need for refined sugar for beverage and food industry in the third quarter of 2015," Agro Industry Director General of the Ministry of Industry Panggah Susanto said here on Monday.

He said that the government would import the sugar based on the recommendation the Ministry of Industry. It is needed to meet the need of industries for refined sugar.

The director general said that in order to meet the need for raw sugar for industries, the government has to import so far. The country has no stack at home.

"The government has issued a license for the importation of raw sugar only for industries but this year, sugar imports are being tightened," Susanto said.

General Chairman of the Indonesian Drink and Food Entrepreneurs (Gapmmi) Adhi Lukman said industries basically supported the importation of raw sugar.

"Up to now, stocks are still adequate and we hope the raw sugar imports would be processed now," Lukman said.

It was earlier reported that the trade ministry issued licenses to import 640,430 tons of raw sugar in the third quarter of this year to feed domestic double refined sugar industry.

"Already issued for the imports of around 600,000 tons," Trade Minister Rachmat Gobel said on Thursday last week.

Rachmat said the  import is decided after evaluating the condition of supply  of double refined sugar for the country's food and beverage industry.

Imports are needed to guarantee supply of raw sugar for double refined sugar industry,  the minister added.

Imports are also needed to prevent illegal imports of double refined sugar, he said.

"Illegal imports have hurt the domestic industry especially in frontier areas," he said.

 In the second quarter of 2015, license was issued for the imports of 945,642 tons but imports totaled only 587,028 tons.

However, the inability of the country to meet its need for sugar has forced the government to import about half its annual need for more than 5 million tons per annum.

The country's white sugar production capacity is 2.7 million tons per year, as compared to consumption need of 4.8 to 5 million tons a year. The remaining 2.3 million tons is imported.    
However, the imported sugar should be designed for the food and beverage industries.

Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman stated recently that Indonesia has to import refined sugar for industries.

"What we plan to import is not white sugar but double-refined sugar for industries," he clarified. (WDY)