Indonesia palm oil firms seen as takeover targets

Jakarta

SOME South-east Asian agri-companies are exploiting a regulatory loophole and turning to takeovers to expand their oil palm acreage in top exporter Indonesia just as weak demand for the edible oil makes smaller producers more open to deals.

Under a 2013 law, companies can only plant up to 100,000 hectares with oil palms, a limit put in place mainly to protect the smallholders that account for about 40 per cent of Indonesia's palm oil output.