Indonesia Launches Radiation Probe into US-Bound Footwear Exports

The radiation scare affecting Indonesian goods meant for the American market is far from over. It started with the US FDA, short for Food and Drug Administration, finding traces of the dangerous radionuclide Cs-137 in a sample of Indonesian frozen shrimp in early August. The agency later made a similar discovery on Indonesian cloves. Most recently, the US returned two containers of Indonesian-made footwear due to suspected radioactive contamination. Bara Krishna Hasibuan, a spokesman at Indonesia's Cs-137 task force, said Monday that the nuclear regulatory body Bapeten had already made the preliminary analysis on the contaminated footwear. The case is now subject to a “more in-depth probe” at the national research agency BRIN.

“We expect results from BRIN’s investigation within this week. If [those footwear containers] are really contaminated [with Cs-137], we will dispose of them,” Bara told reporters in Jakarta on Monday. 

The footwear producer in question operates in Cikande, where the contaminated shrimp originated. The factory is about 5 kilometers away from the industrial site. Bara did not say the name of the producer, only referring to their initials “NM”.  

Local news agencies quoting the Industry Ministry wrote that Nikomas Gemilang, a supplier for American sneaker giants Nike and Adidas, was on the list of companies identified to be potentially affected by Cs-137. Indonesia said that they had already decontaminated the footwear factory. The Dutch customs had previously flagged Indonesian shoe boxes as being potentially linked to radiation contamination before the US launched an import alert on the shrimp imports.

The Indonesian radiation task force suspects the contamination affecting shrimp and footwear both occurred around May. Indonesia suspects scrap metal belonging to the local company Peter Metal Technology to be the source of the radiation. The radiation might have spread to other areas via air during the steel smelting process, according to Bara. 

Footwear is among Indonesia’s key exports to the US, reaching $1.2 billion in 2024. Any Indonesian goods entering the US are now subject to a 19 percent tariff as part of US President Donald Trump’s campaign to narrow Washington’s trade deficit. Both countries are now finalizing a trade agreement, and Indonesia is hoping its footwear can have the import tax lowered to below 19 percent. Chief negotiator Airlangga Hartarto admitted that the discussions on footwear tariffs were “still ongoing”. Indonesia aims to strike the final trade agreement with the US within this year.

Source: Jakarta Globe