Karawang, West Java (ANTARA) - Indonesia is targeting rice exports this year after reaching self-sufficiency and securing domestic supplies, Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman said on Wednesday, marking a potential policy shift for one of the world’s largest rice consumers.
“If Bulog’s absorption this year mirrors 2025 levels, we can certainly export rice,” Sulaiman said, referring to purchases by the state logistics agency that underpin government food reserves and farmer price stability.
He said exports would represent a historic milestone following sustained supply stability, stronger harvests, and improved management of strategic food reserves as domestic rice production continued to rise nationwide.
Indonesia’s government rice reserves currently stand at 3.2 million metric tons, after peaking at four million tons in mid-2025, Sulaiman said, describing the stockpile as the strongest in the country’s history.
He contrasted the current situation with 1984, when Indonesia received recognition from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization despite holding government rice stocks of only about two million tons at the time.
Beyond state reserves, rice consumption by hotels, restaurants and catering businesses has also reached a national record of 12 million tons, reflecting robust demand alongside rising production, the minister added.
Sulaiman credited President Prabowo Subianto’s policy direction and coordination among ministries for enabling Indonesia to move from self-sufficiency toward the ambition of becoming a rice exporter.
Speaking at the same event, Prabowo said Indonesia’s goal was not temporary self-sufficiency, but the ability to meet domestic food needs consistently every year through stronger agriculture and logistics systems.
The president said sustained self-sufficiency would demonstrate Indonesia’s capacity to overcome long-standing doubts about its food security, particularly from critics he described as cynical.
“Today I am optimistic and confident,” Prabowo said during a grand harvest event in Karawang, West Java. “While many said Indonesia could not achieve food self-sufficiency, today we prove that we can.”
