Holiday Ayo - Indonesia, as a maritime country with a sea area of 5.8 million km², does not only utilize its waters for trade and fisheries routes.

Now, Indonesian seawater is an export commodity that attracts the world's attention, including countries such as South Korea, Russia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Singapore.

Based on export data with HS code 25010050, Indonesia actively exports seawater to five main countries.

Malaysia is the largest importer, absorbing 21.6 tons of Indonesian seawater throughout 2023 with a value of US$19,038.

Geographical proximity and the needs of the aquaculture industry and salt production are the main factors in the high demand.

Russia is in second place with imports of 1.8 tons worth US$5,317. Although famous for its cold waters, Russia actually imports Indonesian seawater for aquarium needs, biotechnology research, and natural-based cosmetics.

South Korea also showed high interest with an import volume of 2.75 tons worth US$2,272. This country uses a lot of Indonesian seawater for spas and premium cosmetics.

Meanwhile, Vietnam imports 1.6 tons of seawater worth US$4,560, mainly for premium salt production.

Singapore, although only importing 171 kg worth US$564, uses this seawater for marine research and specific aquarium needs.

Indonesian seawater is rich in natural minerals such as magnesium and sodium, making it a high-value raw material for various industries.

In the aquaculture sector, seawater plays an important role in supporting fish and marine biota cultivation, ensuring a healthy ecosystem and increasing national fisheries production.

In addition, the spa and cosmetics industry also uses seawater in various skin treatments and health therapies, considering its mineral content which can help cell regeneration and increase skin elasticity.

Not only that, Indonesian seawater is the main ingredient in salt processing, especially for the production of premium salt intended for local consumption and export.

Meanwhile, in the field of biotechnology research, seawater is an important component in marine research and the development of products based on natural ingredients.

In fact, countries such as Russia and South Korea use Indonesian seawater to build giant aquarium ecosystems, demonstrating the high quality and purity of seawater from the archipelago.

Despite its great potential, seawater exports face several significant challenges. In terms of logistics and transportation, the heavy and corrosive nature of seawater requires the use of special rust-resistant containers and storage systems that can maintain the stability of mineral content during shipping.

In addition, environmental regulations in several destination countries are quite strict, requiring seawater sources to be taken sustainably without damaging the ecosystem.

This challenge encourages industry players to continue to innovate in creating solutions that ensure environmental sustainability while increasing the competitiveness of Indonesian seawater products in the global market.

To increase competitiveness, Indonesia needs to focus on innovations such as microfiltration to ensure product quality is maintained.

In addition, collaboration with destination countries for research and development of seawater-based products can be an added value.

With the right strategy, Indonesia has the potential to become a leader in the world seawater export market.

The government and business actors can expand the market to Europe and the Middle East, which are starting to realize the benefits of natural ingredients in the health and beauty industry.

Sea water, which has been considered ordinary, turns out to have high economic value.

With market optimization and innovation, this commodity can become a new source of foreign exchange for Indonesia.