POULTRYINDONESIA, Bogor — The Association of Independent Indonesian People’s Farmers (PERMINDO) assesses that the national poultry industry is currently facing policy uncertainty that could potentially disrupt the business sustainability of smallholder farmers, MSMEs, and independent farmers. This concern is primarily directed at the soybean meal (SBM) import policy, which has been fully diverted to State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) without an adequate transition period.

The Chairman of PERMINDO, Kusnan, stated that this policy carries a direct risk of increasing production costs for poultry farmers. According to him, the role of soybean meal in the feed structure makes supply stability and pricing crucial factors.

“Soybean meal accounts for approximately 21 percent of the feed formulation, while feed costs make up roughly 70 percent of total poultry production costs. Any supply disruption or increase in SBM prices will immediately raise the farmers’ cost of production,” Kusnan explained.

He emphasized that PERMINDO understands the government’s good intentions in maintaining feed supply stability, protecting small farmers, preventing private sector dominance, and supporting national strategic programs such as the Free Nutritious Meal initiative. However, he argued that these goals can only be achieved if the policy is prepared and executed thoroughly.

“In principle, we do not reject the state’s role. What we are highlighting is the readiness of the implementation. Without a transition period and strong governance, the policy actually risks putting pressure on smallholder farmers,” he asserted.

Meanwhile, PERMINDO Secretary General, Heri Irawan, highlighted the technical and structural risks of assigning the sole mandate for SBM imports to SOEs. He believes that without adequate infrastructure, distribution, and funding support, the policy could trigger raw material shortages and price hikes at the farmer level.

“This sole assignment risks creating supply bottlenecks, price increases, and even new economic rents due to additional links in the distribution chain. In this situation, smallholder farmers are the most vulnerable party,” said Heri.

According to Heri, smallholder farmers generally lack strong bargaining power, have limited raw material stocks, and lack the ability to hedge against feed price fluctuations. He also warned that past experiences show that assigning mandates to SOEs without transparent audit and tracking systems often fails to achieve the goal of protecting small farmers.

“Without transparency and an auditable system, a policy intended to protect could potentially give birth to new inequalities,” he said.

In response to this, PERMINDO is urging the government to evaluate the SBM import policy and provide a realistic transition period, including opening options for limited private sector involvement under state supervision. Furthermore, PERMINDO emphasized the importance of a feed distribution system that is transparent and favors smallholder farmers.

Kusnan added that the state needs to maintain a strong but professional presence in strategic sectors like feed and breeding, while upholding principles of efficiency and traceability. “The protection of smallholder farmers must be realized through specific schemes, such as strengthening cooperatives, low-cost financing, and direct access to feed raw materials,” he said.

Closing his statement, Heri emphasized the importance of cross-stakeholder collaboration. “The government, SOEs, associations, integrators, and farmer cooperatives must sit down together. The burden of policy adjustment must not be borne solely by small farmers,” he concluded.

PERMINDO reaffirmed its readiness to collaborate constructively with all stakeholders to ensure that smallholder farmers are not sidelined, but instead grow and become an integral part of the national poultry industry ecosystem.

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