JAKARTA (Yosefardi) – The foreign investors currently control 75% of total cocoa production capacity in Indonesia through holding local cocoa processing companies, Detikfinance.com reported.
Zulhefi Sikumbang, chariman of Indonesian cocoa association (Askindo), said the local cocoa producers only hold 25% of cocoa production capacity nation-wide due to lack of funds.
Cocoa producers controlled by foreign investors are such as PT Papandayan Cocoa Industry (Barry Calebaut), PT Asia Cocoa Indonesia-Batam, Cargill, PT Mars Indonesia, JB Cocoa, Barry Comextra, and PT Cocoa Ventures Indonesia.
While local-owned cocoa companies include PT Bumitangerang Mesindotama (BT Cocoa), PT Tojo Sekawan, PT Kakao Mas Gemilang, and PT Mas Ganda.
The national cocoa processing capacity reaches 539,000 tons per year, of which local companies produce 135,000 tons.
Askindo also reported local cocoa ores production is in declining since 2006 after making a record of 620,000 tons at that year.
Zulhefi also said the local cocoa farmers reject the government’s plan to impose zero import duty for cocoa as the policy would only benefit the cocoa processing companies.
MS Hidayat, trade minister, earlier said the cocoa industry is growing fast in the past four months but the local production of cocoa ore is not growing which curbs the industry growth.
Therefore MS Hidayat said the government will support the production of local cocoa ores through intensifying the land area and increasing the productivity, and the last effort is to impose zero import duty from current 5% duty.