Academic Advises Prabowo Study Palm Oil Before Expansion

January 7, 2025 | 06:39 pm

TEMPO.CO, Surabaya - Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto wants to expand oil palm plantations as palm oil is a very strategic product in the world. Therefore, Prabowo asked the businesses not to worry about deforestation. According to him, an oil palm is a tree with leaves that absorb carbon dioxide.

Prabowo's statement conveyed at the end of 2024 sparked widespread reactions. One came from Erekso Hadiwijoyo, a lecturer at the Faculty of Forestry, Brawijaya University, Malang, East Java. He corrected Prabowo's statement that the oil palm is a tree. In theory, Erekso explained, the oil palm is not a tree because its trunk has no cambium.

"The trunk is not woody and branched. Oil palm is the same as coconut and palm," Erekso said when contacted by Tempo on Monday, January 6, 2025.

However, he confirmed that oil palm can absorb carbon dioxide because this plant needs it for photosynthesis. Regarding the status of palm oil as a strategic industry, Erekso revealed that there was a 2011 Forestry Ministerial Regulation that regulates the development of industrial plantation forests. It contains regulations regarding oil palm plants, which are forestry commodities.

"This regulation was debated before it was finally revoked due to many objections," said Erekso, adding that oil palm falls under the category of plantations, not forestry.

Meanwhile, deforestation is the loss of forest to other land, including oil palm plantations. When this happens, he warned, there may be several risks, such as environmental degradation, flooding, and landslides.

Another risk is crop failure of the oil palm plantation itself. According to the Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) graduate, no one can guarantee that palm oil will be harvested in its entirety.

"If the harvest fails, the price is only Rp500 per kilogram. This is a shame compared to the environmental impact of land conversion," said Erekso.

Therefore, Erekso advised the Prabowo government to conduct a thorough study before deciding to expand the area of palm oil plantations. Moreover, he added, there is a discourse to open up to 20 million hectares of forest for the food security program.

"Don't rush. The benefits need to be carefully calculated. Besides, it takes two to three years to harvest palm oil," he said.

Erekso advised the government to maximize the potential of existing palm oil plantations. Calculating the benefits of expansion, he stressed, should be done not only from an economic perspective but also from an environmental perspective.

In addition, he urged Prabowo not to be FOMO (fear of missing out), a contemporary term for the fear of missing out on trends. "Let's say palm oil is popular now, then we immediately plant palm oil. You have to study it first," he said.

Editor's Choice: Prabowo's Statement on Palm Oil May Threaten the Environment, Satya Bumi Says

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News

Palace Admits Some Regions Use Prabowo's Funds for Free Meal Program

7 jam lalu

Indonesia Joins BRICS Bloc as Full Member, Brazil Says

11 jam lalu

Prabowo to Conduct Unannounced Inspections of Free Meal Program

1 hari lalu

Indonesia Dishes Out First Free Meals in Program Targeting 83 Million People

1 hari lalu

Prabowo Predicted to Be Among 10 Influential World Leaders in 2025 by The Strait Times

1 hari lalu

Prabowo's Cabinet Ministers Directly Monitor Free Nutritious Meal Program on First Day

1 hari lalu

IPB Professor Criticizes Indonesian Govt's Unclear Food Self-Sufficiency Target

2 hari lalu

Prabowo Introduces Free Health Check Program as Birthday Gift

4 hari lalu

Prabowo Opens Option to Sink Smugglers' Ships

5 hari lalu

Fedi Nuril: Public Must Become the Opposition

6 hari lalu