As one of Indonesia's national foods, Indomie claims to be the "pioneer of Indonesian instant noodles". It produces about 19 billion packs every year and is sold to more than 100 countries/regions. It is also a daily simple meal in most Indonesian homes.

Source of this article: Times Weekly Author: Liu Muxuan

The question Nasir, a clerk at a small Indonesian store, has received the most in the past week is: Are there still Indomie instant noodles for sale?

This is no ordinary instant noodles.

As one of the national foods of Indonesia , Indomie claims to be the "pioneer of instant noodles in Indonesia". It produces about 19 billion packages every year and sells them to more than 100 countries/regions. It is also a daily simple meal in most Indonesian homes.

The shortage of production raw materials is the main reason for the shortage of instant noodles. According to data from the Indonesian National Bureau of Statistics, Ukraine provided 3 million tons of wheat and mixed wheat imported grains to Indonesia in 2020, and is also Indonesia's largest grain supplier.

Indonesia not only lacks instant noodles, but also lacks oil.

Last week, two citizens of East Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo, died of heatstroke while queuing to buy cooking oil. Ironically, the region is also one of the largest producers of crude palm oil and fresh palm oil in Indonesia.

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine not only caused the international crude oil price to soar, but also affected the export of sunflower oil in the Black Sea region, indirectly exacerbating Indonesia's domestic edible oil shortage crisis.

For Indonesians, the distant conflict between Russia and Ukraine has become a problem of food and clothing that is close at hand.

Indomie instant noodles are the most popular simple meal in Indonesia. Source: Al Jazeera

Short of noodles and oil

Indomie instant noodles are famous for their cheap, brightly colored small packages and rich flavor. They are indispensable for Indonesian migrant workers and student parties. "Refueling artifact". But judging from the current situation, if they want to have a full meal, Indonesians can only go to restaurants to eat instant noodles.

According to Al Jazeera, Indomie is currently out of stock in Indonesia, except for restaurant channels.

The staple food that Indonesians often eat is rice and pasta, but Indonesia’s native crop is corn. In early March, Indonesian President Widodo warned that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine had led to rising global food prices and put pressure on the local food market. Senda, a local food industry observer in Indonesia, pointed out that Indonesians generally believe that imported rice is first-class food, while local products like corn are second-class food.

Although the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture stated that in order to prevent consumption during the Eid al-Fitr holiday, Indonesia's current rice stocks are sufficient, and it is expected that there will still be approximately 9.8 million tons of rice stocks at the end of May. However, it is an indisputable fact that both types of food are dependent on imports to varying degrees.

In addition, the edible oil crisis is currently the most deadly in the Indonesian food market. As the world's largest producer of palm oil , the price of palm oil in Indonesia has increased by 40% since the beginning of the year.

Indonesian farmers are harvesting palm oil

In response to the shortage of palm oil, the Indonesian government temporarily restricted the purchase of cooking oil to 2 liters per person, which in turn triggered a wave of panic among Indonesian residents. Another type of sunflower oil that Indonesians are accustomed to eating has also been cut off due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Sunflower oil from the Black Sea region accounts for 60% of world sunflower oil production and 76% of exports.

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has pushed up international crude oil prices and further affected the production costs of global palm oil. The global rise in palm oil prices has prompted Indonesian palm oil producers to expand exports and seek higher profits.

In order to alleviate the domestic edible oil shortage crisis in Indonesia, the Indonesian government first restricted exports: requiring manufacturers to reserve 30% of palm oil products for domestic use, compared with the previous 20%. This triggered an "earthquake" in the international palm oil market. Under the opposition of a number of international partners, the Indonesian government lifted export restrictions, but increased the export tax limit on palm oil by 80% to US$675 per ton. Control domestic edible oil prices.

In addition, the excess export taxes will be used to subsidize bulk edible oil to stabilize prices and maintain consumer purchasing power. The Indonesian government will start distributing subsidies on April 1 and can continue until the end of this year.

Indonesians line up to buy cooking oil Source: AFP

Russia and Ukraine have messed up the lives of Indonesians

Indonesian People may not understand that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine that is far away can actually leave them without food or food.

Balani, a research assistant at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said that there is already evidence that Indonesia’s wheat supply is tight. "When Russia invaded Ukraine, activity at Ukrainian ports came to a halt. Many of Ukraine's breadbaskets are also located in the east, close to areas of conflict."

Flour consumption in Indonesia increased by only about 5% in 2021, according to the Indonesian Flour Producers Association. However, affected by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, global wheat prices hit a 14-year high in early March this year.

Indomie instant noodles are difficult to buy due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Source: shutterstock

"Maybe it's time to reflect on Indonesian people's dependence on imported food." Food industry observer Senda believes that the price of local food has not been as high as Indonesia's domestic corn and corn. Cassava provides too much power, and Indonesia imports a large amount of rice every year from Pakistan , Vietnam and Thailand.

Currently in Indonesia, the wholesale price of domestic corn is about 3,000 Indonesian rupiah per kilogram (approximately RMB 1.34), while the wholesale price of imported rice is about 12,000 Indonesian rupiah per kilogram (approximately RMB 5.35). This means that corn growers need to sell four kilograms of corn to get the same income as selling one kilogram of imported rice, which greatly dampens the enthusiasm of local farmers.

In addition, diesel shortages have occurred in many places such as Sumatra, Indonesia. Vehicles queuing up to gas stations have caused traffic jams on nearby roads. According to Sumatra transportation department, the normal supply of diesel fuel quota has been reduced by 15% than usual, and gas stations in some areas have even run out of diesel fuel.

The shortage of diesel is partly due to the surge in international oil prices, and partly due to the palm oil crisis in Indonesia. Because the palm oil abundant in Indonesia can also be mixed with diesel to produce biodiesel. As early as 2008, in order to promote domestic palm oil consumption and reduce Indonesia's dependence on fuel imports, Indonesia even provided subsidies every year to attract palm oil producers to supply biodiesel companies, totaling nearly 52 trillion Indonesian rupiah last year (approximately Total RMB 22.9 billion).

Although Indonesia is a major oil producer, it is not good at refining oil. Most domestic refinery plants have old equipment and low production efficiency. In the current environment of skyrocketing international oil prices, the small amount of diesel produced by Indonesian domestic biodiesel companies is more likely to be exported, rather than giving priority to domestic supply.