Indonesian Business Group Calls for Stronger Palm-Oil Producer Alliance
Indonesia’s business community is calling for closer cooperation among palm-oil-producing countries to protect market access and strengthen their negotiating position. Kadin Indonesia wants the CPOPC to coordinate trade diplomacy, sustainability, market development, promotion and research.
Kadin seeks coordinated producer action
Indonesia should strengthen its alliance with other palm-oil-producing countries to improve its bargaining power, defend market access and address trade barriers, according to Kadin Indonesia, the country’s chamber of commerce and industry. The proposal reflects palm oil’s importance as a source of Indonesian export earnings and the pressure facing the commodity in international markets.
Saleh Husin, Kadin’s deputy chairman for industry, said cooperation with fellow producers could also help maintain stability in the global palm oil market. In comments reported by ANTARA, he called on Indonesia to build a stronger common position with other producing countries rather than address market-access and regulatory issues solely at the national level.
The commercial stakes are substantial. Saleh said Indonesia’s palm oil exports are worth more than $20 billion annually and make a significant contribution to national foreign-exchange earnings. Protecting that revenue requires both continued access to consumer markets and an ability to respond collectively to trade restrictions affecting producers.
CPOPC proposed as the main platform
Kadin wants Indonesia to make greater use of the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries, or CPOPC, as the institutional platform for this cooperation. The organization could represent shared producer interests while strengthening palm oil’s position in global trade.
According to Saleh, a reinforced CPOPC should pursue joint initiatives covering trade diplomacy, sustainability principles, palm oil promotion, market development, research and innovation. These areas extend beyond conventional government-to-government advocacy: common sustainability positions could affect acceptance in consumer countries, while coordinated research and promotion could support demand and the industry’s competitiveness.
Saleh said the Indonesian government, working through the Plantation Fund Management Agency, or BPDP, has already made considerable efforts to strengthen international cooperation among producing countries. He nevertheless argued that BPDP should play a larger role as a catalyst, using resources generated by the palm oil sector to support strategic international programs.
Market access and sustainability remain priorities
CPOPC Deputy Secretary-General Musdhalifah Machmud said the organization is continuing its global advocacy for the palm oil sector, including issues affecting farmers and industry participants. Its objectives include creating stable and predictable market access for member countries and improving international perceptions of palm oil.
The council is pursuing those objectives through cooperation programs and high-level forums involving governments, institutions and organizations from multiple sectors. It is also advocating international implementation of sustainability systems, both by encouraging producer countries to apply them and by seeking greater acceptance among consumer countries of standards already operating in producing markets.
CPOPC is additionally expanding science-, fact- and data-based education about palm oil’s benefits. Its Young Elaeis Ambassadors program involves younger participants with backgrounds in the palm oil sector in communicating information about the commodity. For producers, processors and exporters, however, the alliance’s practical value will ultimately depend on whether shared advocacy produces more reliable market access, greater recognition of producer-country sustainability systems and coordinated responses to trade barriers.
