TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Chairperson of the Indonesian Industrial Salt Users Association (AIPGI), Cucu Sutara, revealed that two salt-producing factories in West Java and Banten have shut down due to a shortage of raw materials. They can no longer obtain raw salt supplies after the government halted industrial salt imports.
"As of today, two factories have closed and ceased production due to a lack of raw materials. If they are not producing, industries that rely on salt will also come to a halt. I find this very concerning," Cucu told Tempo on Wednesday, March 12.
The government officially banned salt imports for food processing and pharmaceutical industries starting January 1, 2025. The policy, outlined in Presidential Regulation (Perpres) No. 126 of 2022 on the Acceleration of the National Salt Industry, restricts industrial salt imports except for chlor-alkali plant (CAP) needs.
Cucu said the two factories halted production in November 2024 and January 2025. They had attempted to sustain operations by sourcing local salt from farmers in Central Java, East Java, and PT Garam, but the results were unsatisfactory, with customers complaining about the lower quality compared to imported salt.
According to Cucu, domestically produced salt still fails to meet the needs of the food processing and pharmaceutical industries, let alone CAP. One key issue is sodium chloride (NaCl) content, as locally harvested salt does not match the purity levels of imported salt.
"Still, we cannot neglect our responsibility to improve the quality of salt produced by local farmers so it meets industrial standards," said the former chairman of the West Java Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin).
The production halt has forced salt producers to lay off workers, affecting 70 percent of their workforce. However, Cucu did not disclose the exact number of employees who have temporarily lost their jobs.
For this reason, he supports the government's plan to reopen industrial salt imports, believing that the availability of raw materials will allow salt producers to resume operations.
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