Indonesia can again export pineapples to China in line with the signing of the pineapple export protocol agreement at the bilateral meeting between President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday (26/7/2022). Foreign Minister Retno Marsudirini said that Indonesia and China agreed to strengthen mutually beneficial economic cooperation for both countries as well as the region and the world. "President Xi also reiterated his commitment to increasing imports of Indonesian agricultural products," said Retno in her statement, quoted by the Cabinet Secretariat website, Tuesday (26/7/2022). In addition to the protocol regarding Indonesia's pineapple exports, President Jokowi's meeting with Prime President Xi Jinping in Beijing also agreed on several things, namely the Renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the Synergy of the World Maritime Axis and the Belt Road Initiative, the MoU on Vaccine and Genomics Development and Research Cooperation, the MoU on Green Development, Maritime Cooperation Arrangements, Arrangements for Cooperation in Information Exchange and Enforcement of Customs Violations, Action Plan for Cooperation in Cybersecurity and Technology Capacity Development. Meanwhile, Indonesia's fresh fruit exports to China are still very limited. Some of the fruits exported to China include mangosteen, salak, dragon fruit, and longan. The pineapple protocol has actually been discussed between the two countries since 2016. For information, Indonesia's pineapple production in recent years has increased. In 2021 the total production of Indonesian pineapple production is 2,886,417 tons. In 2020, pineapple production in Indonesia reached 2,447.24 thousand tons. This production increased 11.42% compared to the previous year which was only 2,196.46 thousand tons.
Provinces with the largest pineapple production are Lampung, Central Java, and West Java. Lampung contributed 27.07% to national production. Plants that produce in Lampung are 219.66 million clumps with production reaching 662.59 thousand tons. The high production of pineapple in Indonesia is followed by an increase in the value of exports. The export value of Indonesian pineapples in recent years has shown an increasing trend. According to data from the Central Statistics Agency, in 2020, the export value of pineapples in Indonesia reached USD274.126 million. This figure increased 34.49% when compared to the previous year which was only USD203.819 million. The high export of pineapple is thought to be due to the Covid-19 pandemic which has made people pay more attention to their lifestyle, one of which is by consuming nutritious foods.
