The shipment of crude palm oil (CPO) from Pulau Baai seaport in Bengkulu province this year increased if compared to the shipment last year.

The Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) Bengkulu Office Head John Irwansyah Siregar said recently that the shipment increase indicates the increase of demand of Bengkulu CPO from outside of the province.

He said that CPO shipment from Bengkulu in April 2020 reached 50,481 tons, an increase of 55 percent from 32,605 tons during the same period last year. In March 2020, there was a decrease, but it was due to the trend of harvest and not the impact of Coronavirus Disease 2020 (Covid-19).

According to him, the increase was also due to the smooth distribution of CPO in Bengkulu. “We hope the government will keep supporting the distribution of CPO in Bengkulu. Any obstacle in transportation will affect the activities in plantation areas and the shipment of CPO to other regions, which will then put heavier pressures to the whole palm oil industries,” he said.

He pointed out that despite of the fact, GAPKI Bengkulu will stay alert on the possibility of negative impact caused by the Covid-19 to the palm oil industry.

GAPKI Bengkulu Secretary Daniel Manurung said that they keep a condition of vigilance in the province by tightly implementing the operational protocol on the Covid-19 pandemic.

Besides, GAPKI has been also in coordination and cooperation with the regional government to mitigate the economic impact of Covid-19 which had slowed down the economic growth.

Daniel hopes that the Covid-19 will soon end, so that businesses will return to normal condition. “Palm oil is our national strategic commodity. The palm oil has been the main source of income for many people in Bengkulu as 65 percent of oil palm plantations in the province are owned by smallholders,” he said.

GAPKI central board’s Communication Division Chief Tofan Mahdi said that Bengkulu is like an oasis which exudes a shooting condition. Amid the outbreak of Covid-19 which had impacted many industries, the production of CPO in Bengkulu has been increasing. So far, the palm oil industries are still safe from the Covid-19 and keep their normal operations as before as has been indicated by Bengkulu and other regions. (*)

Source: Media Perkebunan | Picture via palmoilmagazine.com