Meeting With DPR, Entrepreneurs Call 1,100 Shrimp Containers Queue For Cs-137 Free Certification

Shrimp (photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Fishery Product Processing and Marketing Entrepreneurs Association (AP5I) said that currently 1,100 containers containing shrimp products are queuing for a cesium-137 (cs-137) free certificate. The certificate is one of the requirements so that shrimp products from Indonesia can pass exports to the US.

AP5I Chairman Saut P. Hutagalung conveyed this in a Hearing Meeting (RDP) with Commission VII DPR RI and the Directorate General of Agro Industry at the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) at the Parliament Complex, Senayan, Jakarta, Tuesday, November 11.

Saut said, since the case of shrimp products from Indonesia was found to be radioactive, not a single container of shrimp has entered the US. Indonesia has indeed made its first export of shrimp products that have a Cesium-137 free certificate on October 31, 2025.

"Currently, there are around 1,100 shrimp containers in line for certification. We from the association thank the government for working hard. So, in less than two months of industry, together with associations and the government, we can assemble the required certification," said Saut.

Saut explained that each box containing a shrimp product is scanned one by one according to the standard operating procedure (SOP) provided by the US FDA. According to him, it takes about six hours for one container to scan so that the shrimp box is free from Cesium-137.

"Because the US FDA requires two, namely scanning each box with shrimp one by one. If we use the SOP US FDA, six hours per container is the same as one working day, only 1 container. We can imagine that Indonesia is 17,000 containers. Currently there are 1,100 (containers)," he said.

Currently, said Saut, there is only one free laboratory test of BRIN's Cesium-137 in Indonesia that has been verified by US FDA. However, there are three laboratories from the private sector that have not yet been approved by the US FDA.

"The problem now, ma'am, in the context of certification, Indonesia only has one test lab for cesium, namely in BRIN, only one. Actually, there are three other labs in Indonesia that can do it, but until now the US FDA has not approved these three labs," he explained.

"Although these three labs have fulfilled the 17025 ISO accreditation, they should be able to. But because it has not been approved, business actors do not want to take risks so they wait. We are waiting, ma'am, this Thursday there is a virtual meeting with the US FDA to ask for approval regarding these three labs," he added.