East Java, Indonesia's Largest Corn Producer in 2020

Corn is an important agricultural commodity for Indonesia. Besides being a crop, corn also serves as a staple food substitute for rice and animal feed.

According to a report from the Ministry of Agriculture (Kementan), the largest corn-producing province in 2020 was East Java, producing 5.73 million tons of corn, or approximately 21.5% of national corn production. The harvested area of corn in East Java was recorded at 1.19 million hectares.

The second largest corn producer was Central Java, producing 3.18 million tons of corn with a harvested area of 614,300 hectares. Next was Lampung, which produced 2.83 million tons of corn with a harvested area of 474,900 hectares.

Other major corn producers include North Sumatra, producing 1.83 million tons with a harvested area of 350,600 hectares; South Sulawesi, producing 1.82 million tons with a harvested area of 377,700 hectares; West Nusa Tenggara, producing 1.66 million tons last year with a harvested area of 283,000 hectares; and West Java, producing 1.34 million tons of corn with a harvested area of 206,700 hectares.

Then, in the last three places of the largest corn producers are North Sulawesi, producing 0.92 million tons of corn with a harvested area of 235,500 hectares; Gorontalo, producing 0.91 million tons of corn with a harvested area of 212,500 hectares; and South Sumatra, producing 0.80 million tons of corn last year with a harvested area of 137,000 hectares.

According to the Director General of Food Crops at the Ministry of Agriculture, Suwandi, various efforts need to be continuously made to encourage increased production in 2021, and each region is expected to be able to produce corn independently. Similarly, Minister of Agriculture Syahrul Yasin Limpo also directed that the productivity of corn farming needs to be increased. He stated that the Ministry of Agriculture has many varieties with a potential yield of 11 tons per hectare.