Aceh, August 13, 2024 – Deputy Minister of Agriculture Sudaryono stated that the availability of subsidized fertilizer for farmers has significantly improved following the government's decision to increase the fertilizer subsidy allocation to 9.55 million tons from the previous 4.75 million tons.

Sudaryono made this statement after visiting the PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda (PIM) fertilizer plant in Lhokseumawe, Aceh, on Tuesday (August 12, 2024). He commended Pupuk Indonesia's commitment to ensuring the availability of subsidized fertilizer for farmers to support national food security.

"Insya Allah, the availability of fertilizer will be better. With the government-approved amount of 9.5 million tons, which is double the previous allocation, it means an improvement. I have checked various locations, and farmers are reporting better availability of fertilizer compared to before. However, there are some minor issues, such as distribution or potential financial constraints faced by retailers and distributors, that need to be addressed," he said.

In response, Wono Budi Tjahyono, Director of Finance at PT Pupuk Indonesia, stated that PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda, as part of PT Pupuk Indonesia (Persero), is prepared to meet the subsidized fertilizer needs of all registered farmers in Northern Sumatra, including Aceh, according to the government's allocation. "As a state-owned enterprise tasked with producing and distributing subsidized fertilizer, we are fully prepared to meet the subsidized fertilizer needs for registered farmers nationwide, including those in Northern Sumatra and Aceh," Wono said.

Pupuk Indonesia welcomed the government's decision to double the fertilizer subsidy volume from 4.75 million tons to 9.55 million tons by the end of 2024. This additional allocation is intended for four types of fertilizer: Urea, NPK, Special Formula NPK, and the new Organic fertilizer. The allocation increase is set at 4,634,626 tons for Urea, 4,278,504 tons for NPK, 136,870 tons for Special Formula NPK, and 500,000 tons for Organic fertilizer.

Nationally, Wono reported that the stock of subsidized fertilizer reached 1,175,353 tons as of August 12, 2024, including 658,337 tons of Urea and 517,016 tons of NPK. This stock is available for registered farmers under the Definitive Plan for Group Needs (RDKK). For those not receiving allocations, Pupuk Indonesia provides 444,881 tons of non-subsidized fertilizer, comprising 355,989 tons of Urea and 88,892 tons of NPK.

In Northern Sumatra, Pupuk Indonesia has allocated 96,387 tons of subsidized fertilizer, including 82,630 tons of Urea and 13,757 tons of NPK. In Aceh, the subsidized fertilizer stock is 12,396 tons, with 10,329 tons of Urea and 2,067 tons of NPK.

According to Ministry of Agriculture Regulation Number 01 of 2024, registered farmers eligible for subsidized fertilizer must be part of a Farmer Group and listed in the RDKK. The subsidized fertilizer is intended for farmers engaged in staple crop subsectors such as rice, corn, and soybeans, as well as horticultural subsectors like chili peppers, shallots, and garlic, and plantation subsectors such as sugarcane, cocoa, and coffee.

Under this regulation, the criteria for land area is a maximum of 2 hectares, including farmers affiliated with Forest Village Community Institutions (LMDH), in accordance with legal requirements. The new regulation allows for the evaluation of farmer data in the RDKK every four months within the current year. This means that farmers who have not yet received allocations can update their registration during the evaluation process.