January 9, 2025

Indonesia plans to bring in wheat as corn's substitute in animal feed

Indonesia is planning to import wheat as a substitute for corn in animal feed to prevent disrupting domestic demand for corn, according to the country's Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs Zulkifli Hasan on January 6.

"The imported wheat will be specifically used for animal feed and won't be available for public consumption," Hasan said after a meeting at his office in Jakarta. "We have agreed that wheat will replace corn, as its price is relatively cheaper."

He explained that the government had previously been importing corn for animal feed but now intends to replace those corn imports with wheat, given the high local corn production. This change is necessary to prevent excessive domestic stocks of corn.

Hasan noted that this year's domestic corn production is estimated to reach 16.68 million tonnes, while the demand is only 13 million tonnes.

Statistics Indonesia reported that from January to September 2024, Indonesia imported 967,900 tonnes of corn, valued at US$247.9 million. The primary sources of these imports were Argentina, Brazil, and Pakistan.

- United News of India