October 28, 2011

East Java to import soy from China, US

In order to fulfill their soy requirement, Indonesia's East Java province plans to import 62,000 tonnes of soy from China and the US.

East Java Agriculture Department chief Wibowo Eko Putro was quoted as saying on Wednesday (Oct 26) that he province is expected to produce only around 355,000 tonnes of soy this year.

Wibowo said decreasing availability of farm lands in East Java caused difficulty in the programme to boost production of the food product.

Soy plantations in that province shrank from 264,779 hectares in 2009 to 230,145 this year, he said.

East Java deputy governor Saifullah Yusuf said that imports are needed to maintain price stability of soy-based products.