Indonesia expects to import 3 million tons of salt this year largely to meet the needs of the chemical industry, according to an article from The Jakarta Post. The industry reportedly consumed about 1.7 million tons of salt last year.

According to Garam, the state-owned salt producer quoted in the article, Indonesia is relatively self-sustainable in producing salt for public consumption but falls short in supplying enough salt for industrial use. Despite having 34,000 miles of coastline, Indonesia’s salt-producing potential reportedly remains untapped. Australia and India are said to ship 1 million tons of salt to Indonesia each year. To reduce dependency on salt imports for industrial use, Garam began developing a new production facility in Bipolo village, Kupang in May.

Read the entire article here.