REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The National Maize Council (DJN) has insisted that Indonesia does not need to import corn seeds as domestic producers are able to meet national demand. The Secretary General of the National Corn Board, Maxdeyul Sola, said here on Friday that the national corn seed requirement is around 80,000 tons to 100,000 tons per year.

This need is calculated from the total area of "corn plant," which is 4 million ha. The assumption of seed need of about 20 kg per ha to 25 kg per ha.

"This requirement can be fulfilled by national and multinational seed producers, so we no longer need to import corn seeds," Sola asserted.

However, he acknowledged that it is difficult to meet seed demand immediately.

"This seed production was planned a year ago, so if the request is sudden, yes, it is difficult to meet," he said.

According to Sola, some areas recently complained about the difficulty of obtaining hybrid corn seeds. This happens because it is outside the producer's production schedule.

"The seed producers prepare the stock ahead of the growing season in each region," he said.

Sola added that the lack of seeds has also caused agricultural services to pursue target budget absorption for Plant-Added Areas (LTT). With regard to field observations, many districts impose the provision of seeds or seed distribution to farmers outside the growing season, making the seeds unavailable, he explained.

Sola asserted that seed businessmen should not be too keen to rely on imports because Indonesian exports find it difficult to get permission from destination countries.

India, for example, has asked for corn seeds from Indonesia, but the request could not be fulfilled because export permits were difficult to obtain.

Sola also said it was necessary to absorb 65 percent of the seeds from Serelia Research Institute, R & D Maros, to fulfill the government project of the Ministry of Agriculture (Kementan).

"This means that the government encourages the greater use of local seeds," he said

Regarding the quality of R & D seeds that many farmers complain about, Sola said Serega Serelia, Maros should be more selective in choosing partner breeders.

In a separate statement, the Director General of Food Crops, Sumardjo Gatot Irianto, said of the seeds that have already been distributed, some have already been planted, while others have already been channeled and were in the initial process of distribution.

Seed assistance efforts are conducted in all regions of Indonesia, but they are largely directed towards the expansion of new crops or areas that have not previously been planted with maize.

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