The Indonesian government has successfully reached an agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reopen market access for Indonesian shrimp exports to the United States. The deal ensures that thousands of Indonesian shrimp containers currently being shipped will be allowed entry despite new import regulations set to take effect at the end of October.
According to Ishartini, Head of the Marine and Fisheries Product Quality Control and Supervision Agency at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, the agreement was finalized on Saturday (US time) after intensive negotiations with the FDA regarding Import Alert (IA) #99-52, which will officially begin on October 31, 2025.
Under the new regulation, the FDA requires stricter inspections of shrimp imports from Indonesia—especially from Java and Lampung—to confirm they are free from radioactive Cesium-137 contamination. Exporters must also provide certificates from Indonesian authorities verifying that the products are free of radioactive materials.
Last month, US officials had temporarily halted several Indonesian shrimp shipments after detecting traces of Cesium-137. The incident raised concerns among exporters and prompted urgent diplomatic discussions between Jakarta and Washington.
With the latest deal, the FDA has granted a special exemption for thousands of containers that were shipped before the regulation takes effect. This decision alleviates fears among Indonesian exporters who had already dispatched their shipments without the newly required documentation.
“We managed to assure the FDA that over a thousand containers had passed Indonesia’s rigorous quality assurance process and were certified under our national fisheries quality control system,” Ishartini explained.
The agreement marks a significant step in maintaining Indonesia’s position as one of the major global shrimp exporters while reinforcing bilateral trade cooperation between the two nations.