Indonesian coffee exporters eye potential in Middle East market

A coffee farmer is given advice by an agronomist and coffee expert in Yayasan village, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Nov. 2017. (Reuters)
Short Url
Updated 21 August 2022
Follow

Indonesian coffee exporters eye potential in Middle East market

  • Egypt was second biggest export destination for Indonesian coffee in 2021
  • Indonesia hopes to boost exports to the UAE, including for coffee products

JAKARTA: Indonesian coffee producers are eyeing the potential of boosting exports to the Middle East, as they say interest from the region has risen in recent years.

Indonesia is the fourth-largest coffee-producing country in the world and Asia’s second biggest, accounting for about 7 percent of global coffee output. In 2021, the Southeast Asian nation exported about 384 thousand metric tons worth almost $850 million, according to the Central Statistics Agency.

Egypt was the second-biggest export destination for Indonesian coffee last year, just behind the US. The Association of Indonesian Coffee Exporters and Industries said that exports to the Middle East region have been growing in the past decade.

“The Middle East market potential will always continue to grow for medium and premium quality coffee,” Moelyono Soesilo, head of specialty and industry at the association, told Arab News on Saturday.

Interest in Indonesian coffee has grown in the region because of global coffee trends and the rise of modern cafes across the world, Soesilo said, but also as more Indonesian travelers visit the Middle East.

“Many Indonesian citizens travel to the Middle East and they would bring Indonesian coffee products there, automatically and indirectly introducing it to the people in the region,” Soesilo said.

Husin Bagis, Indonesian ambassador to the UAE, told Arab News there was potential for Indonesian coffee products to gain traction in the region and beyond, as long as producers match the competitive pricing.

“It’s very possible because from Dubai, it usually works as a hub for Africa, Middle East, and Europe,” Bagis said.

Bagis said that with the wide-ranging economic pact Indonesia signed with the UAE earlier this year in July, more exports of Indonesian goods, including coffee, should be expected.

“President Joko Widodo wants to boost all exports,” Bagis said. “And (coffee) is one of our pride.”

Indonesian coffees have been gaining more interest worldwide in recent years, and is known for its full-bodied, rich taste and long finish. Cultivation of the beans takes place across its many islands, including Java, Sumatra, and Sulawesi.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Indonesian coffee exporters had planned on participating in exhibits in the Middle East to showcase their products, the Indonesian Coffee Exporters Association told Arab News.

“Before the COVID pandemic we had a lot of plans to expand our networks in the Middle East,” said the association’s chairman, Hutama Sugandhi.

“I think it’s a big market because in Egypt, among some of our exporters, the purchase volume has only continued to increase,” he said.

Hariyanto, a coffee exporter from East Java province, said he is focused on maintaining a consistent quality for his products.

“I will keep going where the profit is best and continue to chase it, and I see a match in Egypt with what I produce, so it’s my duty to maintain the quality,” Hariyanto said.

Suradi, a Jakarta-based coffee bean seller who has been in the business since 2000, said there was “extraordinary potential in the Middle East” for Indonesian coffee.

“It’s up to us whether we can tap on this potential or not,” Suradi said. “For every coffee business, as long as we are consistent with the quality, coffee will never die.”


Denmark says no country can ‘just help themselves’ to Greenland

Updated 4 sec ago
Follow

Denmark says no country can ‘just help themselves’ to Greenland

“Greenland is a wonderful place, we need it for international security,” Trump said
Lokke said he was “satisfied” that Trump had not cited Greenland as a priority in his speech

COPENHAGEN: Denmark’s foreign minister said Tuesday that no country should be able to simply help themselves to another country, following US President Donald Trump’s renewed remarks about taking control of Greenland.
Trump, who took office on Monday, set off alarm bells in early January by refusing to rule out military intervention to bring the Panama Canal and Greenland — which is an autonomous Danish territory — under US control.
“Of course we can’t have a world order where countries, if they’re big enough, no matter what they’re called, can just help themselves to what they want,” Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told reporters Tuesday.
While he didn’t mention Greenland in his inauguration speech on Monday, Trump was asked about it by reporters in the Oval Office afterwards.
“Greenland is a wonderful place, we need it for international security,” Trump responded.
“I’m sure that Denmark will come along — it’s costing them a lot of money to maintain it, to keep it,” he added.
Lokke said he was “satisfied” that Trump had not cited Greenland as a priority in his speech, but added that the “rhetoric” was the same.
“It doesn’t make me call off any crisis, because he said other things about expanding the American territory,” Lokke told Danish media.
Greenlandic Prime Minister Mute Egede has insisted “that Greenland is not for sale” but that the territory was open to doing business with the US.
Among Danes, the omission of Greenland in the inauguration speech led to some relief.
“He didn’t mention Greenland or Denmark in his speech last night, so I think there’s room for diplomacy,” 68-year-old actor Donald Andersen told AFP.
On Monday, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a post to Instagram that Europe would need to “navigate a new reality.”
While noting the Greenlandic people’s right to self-determination, the head of government also stressed the need for Denmark to maintain its alliance with the US — which she described as Denmark’s most important since World War II.
A number of Danish party leaders were called to the prime minister’s office on Tuesday to be briefed on the situation.
“We have to recognize that the next four years will be difficult years,” Pia Olsen Dyhr, leader of the Green Left, told reporters after meeting with Frederiksen.

Zelensky says Ukraine working to set up Trump meeting

Updated 22 min 22 sec ago
Follow

Zelensky says Ukraine working to set up Trump meeting

  • “The teams have been working on a meeting, they are currently in the process,” Zelensky said
  • Trump has said he will stop the war in Ukraine swiftly without saying how

DAVOS: Ukraine is working to set up a meeting between President Volodymyr Zelensky and US President Donald Trump, Zelensky said on Tuesday.
“The teams have been working on a meeting, they are currently in the process,” Zelensky said of efforts to arrange a meeting with Trump.
He was speaking in an interview panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Trump, who took office on Monday, has said he will stop the war in Ukraine swiftly without saying how.
Zelensky said Ukraine would not agree to Russian demands that it drastically reduce the size of its military, predicting that Russian President Vladimir Putin would demand Ukraine cut its military to a fifth its size.
“This is what he wants. We will not allow this to happen,” Zelensky said.
In his speech, Zelensky suggested Europe had less influence over Washington because the United States viewed its allies’ contribution to security as lacking.
“Does anyone in the United States worry that Europe might abandon them someday – might stop being their ally? The answer is no,” Zelensky said.


Zelensky urges ‘united’ European defense policy at Davos

Updated 56 min 6 sec ago
Follow

Zelensky urges ‘united’ European defense policy at Davos

  • Zelensky said Europe needed to be ready to stand on its own feet and must work to remain relevant as a “strong global” player
  • “Europe must be able to guarantee peace and security for itself“

DAVOS: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that Europe should develop a joint defense policy and be willing to increase spending to guarantee its own security from emerging threats.
His comments to the World Economic Forum in Davos came a day after the inauguration of US President Donald Trump, who has demanded NATO members raise their defense spending and boasted he can end the war in Ukraine, without offering a clear roadmap.
Zelensky said Europe needed to be ready to stand on its own feet and must work to remain relevant as a “strong global” player and “indispensable” on the global stage.
“We need a united European security and defense policy, and all European countries must be willing to spend as much on security as is truly needed,” Zelensky argued in his address to the WEF.
“Europe must be able to guarantee peace and security for itself,” he added.
He evoked the Kremlin’s deployment of North Korean troops to western Russia to illustrate what he said were growing threats to European security.
“European leaders should remember this — battles involving North Korean soldiers are now happening in places geographically closer to Davos than to Pyongyang,” he said.
And he pointed to a recent pact between Russia and Iran boosting their economic and military cooperation, saying the accord was an example of a changing landscape that was a threat to Europe.
“Whom do they make such deals against? Against you, against all of us,” he said. “Such threats can only be countered together,” he added.
Zelensky also questioned whether Trump was committed to NATO and European security, claiming that Washington has openly indicated their security priorities lie in the Middle East and in the Asia-Pacific region.
“Will President Trump even notice Europe? Does he see NATO as necessary? And will he respect EU institutions?” Zelensky asked.


‘Canada will respond’ if US imposes tariffs: Trudeau

Updated 21 January 2025
Follow

‘Canada will respond’ if US imposes tariffs: Trudeau

  • “Canada will respond and everything is on the table,” Trudeau told a news conference

OTTAWA: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday vowed a strong response if Donald Trump slaps 25 percent tariffs on Canadian imports, which the US president signaled could come as early as February.
“Canada will respond and everything is on the table,” Trudeau told a news conference, adding that Ottawa’s reaction would be “robust and rapid and measured,” but also match dollar for dollar the US tariffs.


Marco Rubio becomes Secretary of State, emphasizes ‘America First’ agenda

Updated 21 January 2025
Follow

Marco Rubio becomes Secretary of State, emphasizes ‘America First’ agenda

  • The US Senate unanimously confirmed Rubio, a China hawk and staunch backer of Israel, just hours after Trump took office on Monday
  • “His (Trump’s) primary promise when it comes to foreign policy is that the priority of the United States Department of State will be the United States,” Rubio said

WASHINGTON: US Senator Marco Rubio from Florida became the first of President Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees to be sworn into office on Tuesday, where he emphasized that US foreign policy under Trump will put American needs first.
The US Senate unanimously confirmed Rubio, a China hawk and staunch backer of Israel, just hours after Trump took office on Monday.
“His (Trump’s) primary promise when it comes to foreign policy is that the priority of the United States Department of State will be the United States, it will be furthering the national interest of this country,” Rubio said after he was sworn into office by US Vice President JD Vance.
He added that another foreign policy goal under Trump will be “the promotion of peace. Of course, peace through strength, peace and always without abandoning our values.” Rubio, 53 and a Republican, was a long-term member of the Senate foreign relations and intelligence committees. He is a harsh critic of China and an advocate for Israel. The son of immigrants from Cuba, he has also pushed for tough measures against the Communist-ruled island and its allies, especially the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
During his confirmation hearing, he warned that the US must change course to avoid becoming more reliant on China, and promised a robust foreign policy focused on American interests.
Rubio also said it should be US policy that the war in Ukraine must end. He said reaching an agreement to stop the fighting would involve concessions from both Moscow and Kyiv, and he suggested that Ukraine would have to give up its goal of regaining all the territory Russia has taken in the last decade.
Rubio is the first person of Hispanic origin to serve as the nation’s top diplomat.