Farmers Suffer Even More

Kompas/Bahana Patria Gupta

Coordinator of installation processing Achmad Muzayyad checks machines at Toelangan sugar factory in Tulangan district, Sidoarjo, East Java, on Wednesday (10/5). The plant has stopped operations due to difficulties in obtaining raw materials.

SURABAYA, KOMPAS — Although the sugar industry contributes about Rp 411 trillion (US$30.84 billion) to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), the attention to improve the sugarcane plantation remains low.

The income of sugarcane farmers has continued to drop, and even productivity at sugar processing businesses has declined.