Anton Hermansyah, Jakarta – The Indonesian Tobacco Farmers Association (APTI) has urged the government to implement a policy to control the importation of tobacco to protect local farmers.

During a meeting between APTI members from nine provinces and President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo at the Merdeka Palace on Monday, they called on the President to allow cigarette companies to import tobacco only if they had absorbed the tobacco produced by the local farmers.

"If a company buys a small amount of local tobacco, it has to get only a small import quota. If a company buys a large amount of local tobacco, the government can give a larger quota. But it should be no more than 20 percent of its total consumption," APTI chairman Agus Parmuji said after the meeting.

According to the APTI data, the tobacco import reached only around 28,000 tons in 2003, but it surged to 90,000 tons in 2010 and again to 150,000 tons in 2012, which was about 72.5 percent of the total tobacco consumption.

The increase of imported tobacco had resulted in the lower absorption of local tobacco and the decline of prices, Agus said, adding that local tobacco production reached 247,000 tons annually with prices varying from Rp 45,000 (US$3.31) per kilogram to Rp 350,000 per kg, depending on the quality.

Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman said that he would discuss the matter with Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita. "Actually, we talked to cigarette companies last month and they agreed to buy local tobacco at good a price," he said. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2017/10/31/tobacco-farmers-urge-government-to-control-import.html