The Indonesian Food and Beverage Producers Association (GAPMMI) hopes that the new regulations on the management of cocoa and coconut export levies by the Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency (BPDPKS) will be effective in achieving their goals. Adhi S. Lukman, Chairman of GAPMMI, stated that the industry expects these regulations to ensure the availability of raw materials and promote downstream processing. Adhi believes that managing the export levy funds for cocoa and coconut will strengthen the upstream sector, thereby supporting the rapid growth of the downstream sector. GAPMMI, which consists of 475 large, medium, and small-scale industry members, requests that the new regulations be discussed together. Adhi emphasized the need to prioritize downstream programs and ensure the availability of raw materials for the food and beverage industry without adding additional burdens to the industry. Previously, the Ministry of Industry initiated the establishment of cocoa and coconut institutions. Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita stated that the meeting agreed to delegate the management of cocoa and coconut to BPDPKS through the formation of two new deputies: the Cocoa Deputy and the Coconut Deputy.
The three main objectives of this establishment are to ensure the availability of industrial raw materials, maintain industrial sustainability and competitiveness, and increase added value. The fund collection will continue through an export levy scheme managed directly by BPDPKS. Agus Gumiwang explained that Indonesia was the third-largest cocoa bean producer until 2015 but has now dropped to seventh place. In terms of industry, Indonesia is currently the fourth-largest producer and exporter of processed cocoa products globally as of 2023. Between 2015 and 2023, Indonesia's cocoa production declined by 8.3% per year, while imports increased from 239,377 tons to 276,683 tons. According to Agus Gumiwang, the growth of the cocoa processing industry has not been matched by the availability of raw materials, leading nine out of 20 companies to cease operations. Additionally, coconut downstream processing remains limited due to suboptimal raw material utilization and the continued export of whole coconuts. This, according to Agus Gumiwang, results in the coconut processing industry's utilization rate being around 55%.
