Indonesia is eyeing new markets for its crude palm oil (CPO) as its export to European market is likely to be halted in the next several years due to the region's new criteria related the commodity, the Kompas daily quoted an official as saying on Monday.
Secretary General of the Indonesian Palm Businessmen Association (GAPKI) Joko Supriyono said on Sunday that Indonesia has started to eye new markets like Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
"However, we can't abandon the EU's market because it is very potential for Indonesia's CPO," he said.
The association's data showed that Indonesia's CPO export in 2008 stood at 7,904.179 tons. Of the total, as much as 968,205 tons were exported to the EU from the Netherlands' ports.
Indonesia's other CPO export markets are India, China and Singapore. The European market is the second largest CPO export after India.
Rosediana Suharto, the head of Indonesian Palm Commission, said that to sell CPO to EU and to gain incentive, exporters should fulfill the region's directive criteria.
"If not, they will not get the incentive and no country in the region wants to buy the commodity," he said.
The directive criteria on the usage of renewable energy from renewable sources were approved by the European Parliament on April 23, 2009.
He said that one way to anticipate the export obstacle to the regions is by expanding export market to other countries like China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Eastern European countries.