Poultry: Indonesia to import 2.4m tonnes of corn in 2016
The government has decided to import 2.4m tonnes of corn to meet demand for animal feed in 2016. The corn imports will total 200 thousand tonnes per month. In 2016, corn imports will account for 30% of total feed demand for corn of about 8.6m tonnes, or about 665 thousand tonnes per month. The Ministry of Industry says the corn will be imported from India, Brazil, Thailand and the US, and will be used for animal feed only. Total national demand for corn is 14m tonnes, including 5.2m tonnes for the food industry. According to the Association of Animal Feed Producers (APPI), animal feed production is projected to reach 16.5m tonnes. To meet this demand will require at least 8.3m tonnes of corn with a moisture level of 14%. CEO of Indonesian Bureau of Logistics (Bulog) says Bulog has obtained the licence from the government to import corn. Bulog will import 600,000 tonnes of corn in 1Q16. The Economic Affairs Coordinating Minister says corn imports are necessary as domestic corn production is insufficient to fulfil domestic demand. The government will monitor actual corn imports every three months as corn is harvested every three months.