To meet the sugar needs of industries, self-sufficiency is targeted to be achieved by 2030, he said in a statement released on Tuesday.
He noted that in order to accelerate national sugar self-sufficiency, the government has prepared a roadmap.
The roadmap includes measures such as increasing sugarcane productivity to 93 tons per hectare by improving agricultural practices, adding 700 thousand hectares of sugarcane plantation area, as well as increasing the efficiency, utilization, and capacity of sugar factories to achieve a yield percentage of 11.2 percent.
In addition, it includes improving sugarcane farmers' welfare and increasing the production of bioethanol from sugarcane plants to at least 1.2 million kiloliters by 2030.
Kartasasmita said that 59 factories, including 40 owned by a state-run company, are actively producing granulated sugar from sugarcane to fulfill direct consumption in Indonesia.
"From these factories, the total national installed capacity reaches 324,350 TCD (tons of cane per day)," he added.
Meanwhile, there are 11 refined sugar factories that process raw sugar into granulated sugar to meet the raw material needs of the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries, with a total capacity of 5 million tons per year.
He noted that the national sugar need in 2023 is projected to be around 6.8 million tons per year.
"Comprising 3.4 million tons of sugar needed by households and 3.4 million tons for the food and beverage industry, it already includes the need for sugar for small and medium industries (IKM) of 400 thousand–500 thousand tons," he explained.
Kartasasmita said that, based on the results of the initial assessment, the national sugar supply from domestic cane-based sugar industries in 2023 is estimated to reach 2.7 million tons.
Thus, to boost productivity to meet the need, it is necessary to develop new sugar industries that are integrated with sugarcane plantations, he added.
Kartasasmita then lauded PT Muria Sumba Manis (MSM), which has established an integrated sugar factory in Wanga village, East Sumba, East Nusa Tenggara. The minister visited the factory on Tuesday.
He said he hoped that the production activity at the new sugar factory would help reduce imports.
"We continue to make efforts to revitalize the sugar industry in the country to be more productive and competitive. To meet the domestic need, sugar factories in the country are currently being encouraged to use modern technologies," he informed.
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Translator: Ade Irma, Raka Adji
Editor: Anton Santoso
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