THE government’s plan to build sugar factories outside Java is both good and noble: Java no longer has enough land that can be used for sugar cane. Meanwhile, the demand for sugar cannot be met by domestic production. Of the 5.7 million tons required by industry and households, Indonesian farmers can only supply 2.2 million tons. The rest has to be imported.

Therefore, the 2016 decision by the cabinet to pursue the goal of self-sufficiency