The Australian Livestock Exporters Council (ALEC) this week welcomed Australia’s Federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins on a tour of Indonesia where she visited live cattle supply chains handling Australian cattle and engaged with members of the Indonesian cattle industry.
ALEC Chair David Galvin and CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton accompanied Minister Collins to the PT Lembu Jantan Perkasa feedlot in West Java.
CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton said the Minister’s visit was important to see the impact that the Indonesian market has on local people and its importance in Australia.
“Indonesia is our most important market, and it is tremendous that Minister Collins has prioritised visiting Indonesia so soon after the election to visit live cattle supply chains. There is no substitute for seeing supply chains firsthand to understand the positive impact the Australian industry has here.”
“The live cattle industry underpins cattle production across northern Australia and also contributes tens of thousands of jobs in Indonesia while supporting its food security.”
“The visit is also particularly important to indicate Australia’s support for President Prabowo’s Nutritious Meals Program. This program is ambitious and aims to provide nutrition to millions of schoolchildren across Indonesia. Our industry is proud to play an integral role in this program, and we value Minister Collins’ support.”
Last year Australia exported nearly 500,000 cattle to Indonesia and so far in 2025 increased volumes demonstrates that demand continues to grow.
Boost for Australian renderers as Indonesian trade opens
The Australian and Indonesian governments signed a bilateral protocol opening market access for the export of Australian rendered products for animal feed to Indonesia.
The new trade arrangement reinstates access lost in 2018 and was previously estimated by industry at the time to be worth more than $100 million for Australian producers and exporters.
The deal will benefit the Australian rendering industry by opening access to a new market for their products, bolstering the industry’s economic resilience and enhancing sustainability by making use of all valuable animal materials.
Indonesia’s poultry and aquaculture sectors will also benefit from access to safe, competitive and high-quality animal feed supply ingredients through the opening of trade.
To date six Australian rendering establishments have been approved by the Indonesian Government for the export of rendered product.
Indonesia is Australia’s 5th largest agricultural export market, with two-way trade valued at $5.5 billion in 2023-2024.
The Indonesian market made up around 32 per cent of Australia’s export trade in rendered products when it was last active in 2018.
Source: ALEC, Minister for Agriculture
Good read and we need to ezplore more engagement with bilateral agreement