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Concerned by a rise in the consumption of imported fruit,
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has urged Indonesians to purchase
locally grown agricultural products.
Speaking during a visit to a durian plantation in Sukabumi, West Java,
on Sunday, the President also called for integrated efforts to increase
the country's food production, in order to meet rising demand.
"By increasing production, the government is hoping that
self-sufficiency in food production can be achieved," Yudhoyono told
journalists during a tour of the 28-hectare plantation.
The President also expressed concerns over the fact that many people in
cities preferred to buy imported fruit rather than local varieties.
"I ask people not to overlook local fruit," he said.
Imported fruits and vegetables have come to dominated many grocery
stores and hypermarkets in the country's bigger cities.
The government imposed a 25 percent import duty on imported fruit since
October last year. But imported fruit, particularly from China,
continues to flood local supermarkets.
In line with the 2004 Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic
Cooperation, signed by China and ASEAN countries, horticultural
products, including fruits and vegetables from China, are exempted from
the 25 percent import duty.
Indonesia is among the world's largest importers of agricultural
products. The country imports 3.7 million tons or rice, 1.6 million
tons of sugar and 1.3 million tons of corn a year. Fruit imports reach
247,000 tons a year.
Agriculture is a major plank in the Indonesian economy, accounting for
15 percent of gross domestic product and employing approximately 42
million people.
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