Jakarta. Poland is finally exporting its apples to Indonesia, thus paving the way for Warsaw to cut its trade deficit with Jakarta.

Poland has been trying to get its apples into the Indonesian market over the past few years. Poland is the world’s third-largest producer of apples, harvesting around 4 million tons each year, making it Poland recently announced the first shipment of its apples through the so-called “Garden of Europe” campaign. This is a promotional campaign co-funded by the European Union (EU) to increase fruit exports to international markets, including Indonesia.

“Poland submitted an application to allow Polish apples to enter the Indonesian market five years ago. It was truly a long process, but I believe it was worth the wait. … I’m confident we can compete on the Indonesian market, both in terms of quality and price with apples from the US, China, or New Zealand,” Maciej Tumulec, the chargé d'affaires ad interim of the Polish Embassy in Indonesia, said.

Tumulec said that the Polish apples had met Europe’s high standards. Modern storage and transportation technologies have enabled Poland to bring in its apples while maintaining the fruit’s “excellent taste and structure”. These apples are available in Indonesian supermarket chains such as Ranch Market, HERO, Farmers Market, Market City, and Duta Buah.

“We are confident that these delicious fruits will not only satisfy the taste buds of Indonesian consumers but also contribute to a stronger trade relationship between our two countries,” the diplomat stated.

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) report shows that Indonesia’s overall fruit imports totaled almost 690 million kilograms in 2023, a decrease compared to the 749.9 million kilograms of imports the previous year. According to BPS, Indonesia imports its fruits from around the world, although no EU country has cracked the top 10 list of countries' sources of imported fruits. Indonesia mainly imports fruits from China. About 458.3 million kilograms of China-grown fruits made it to Indonesia in 2023.

Poland is currently importing more than it exports to Indonesia. The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that bilateral trade had amounted to $1 billion throughout 2024, up from $997.1 million the previous year. Indonesia’s exports to Poland totaled $726.4 million in 2024, while imports from the European country were worth $279.6 million.

At present, Indonesia and the EU are currently negotiating a comprehensive economic partnership agreement. Jakarta aims to finish this trade deal negotiations within the first half of 2025.