December 5, 2008
Indonesia's eastern regions driving seafood exports
Seafood exports from Indonesia's eastern regions up-to-date this year have brought in IDR15 trillion (US$1.25 billion), half of the country's IDR30 trillion (US$2.5 billion) target, a senior fisheries official said.
Indonesia's fish exports went to the US, Japan and the EU, said Martini Huseini, director general of fish marketing and processing at the Maritime and Fisheries Ministry.
Martini said the government is currently working to expand Indonesia's fish export market to the Middle East and Russia.
Middle Eastern countries have expressed interest in importing Indonesian seafood products, said Martini.
Shrimp is Indonesia's key seafood export item, said Martini, adding that shrimp export value had been increasing year-on-year.
Indonesia's shrimp export value reached US$2.3 billion in 2006. It rose to US$2.6 billion in 2007 and was recorded at US$2.8 billion so far this year, Martini said.
