Indonesia has secured renewed access to the European market for its farmed fish exports after the E.U. placed the Southeast Asian nation on its latest approved-country list.
According to Ishartini, the head of the Marine and Fishery Product Quality Control and Supervision Agency within Indonesia's Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, the reinstatement, made under Commission Implementing Regulation (E.U.) 2026/1189, has helped ease concerns among Indonesian aquaculture businesses after the country was excluded from earlier approved lists, Indonesian news agency Antara reported.
Ishartini further explained that the outcome came after the Indonesian ministry held sustained talks with relevant E.U. authorities and worked through diplomatic channels to represent Indonesia’s aquaculture sector. That included a meeting with the E.U. Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety in Brussels, Belgium.
Ishartini also cited support from the E.U. delegation in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, the Indonesian Embassy in Brussels, and Indonesia’s foreign affairs and trade ministries in securing access.
With Indonesia now back on the E.U.'s approved list, the country expects farmed fish exports to ramp up to the bloc, she said.
The E.U. is Indonesia’s fifth-largest export destination for fishery products, with shrimp, milkfish, and pangasius among the country’s key seafood exports to the E.U. Ishartini said there is also room to expand tilapia shipments to European buyers, as Indonesia’s Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries has positioned Nile tilapia as a key emerging export product.
To accommodate increased export opportunities, Indonesia Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono said the government is raising production capacity through the development of the Saline Tilapia Cultivation Area in Karawang, as well as pond upgrades along Java’s North Coast. The two programs are designed to lift national tilapia output while keeping farming practices aligned with international requirements.
Erwin Dwiyana, who is the director of marketing within the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, said Indonesia’s tilapia exports have recorded no rejections so far, largely thanks to the products’ certifications including Best Aquaculture Practices and Aquaculture Stewardship Council.
