Indonesia to import nine million tonnes of wheat in 2017

Illustrative image (Source: AFP/VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesia plans to import 8.7 – 9 million tonnes of wheat this year, said Franciscus Welirang, Chairman of the Association of Wheat Flour Producers in Indonesia (APTINDO).

The country purchased 8.34 million tonnes of wheat in 2016. Australia is the largest wheat supplier of Indonesia, though its share dropped from nearly 60 percent in 2015 to about 30 percent in mid-2016, according to APTINDO statistics.

Earlier, the Indonesian Bureau of Logistics said that the country will aim to stabilise the price and distribution of rice, for self-sufficiency and emergencies.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture expects rice output to reach 80 million tonnes in 2017, with local demand at 60 million tonnes per year.

Indonesia imported 1.2 million tonnes of rice last year, though the country had previously announced it would not import the product.-VNA