Indonesian Mega-Farm Drives Surge in Deforestation

Indonesia saw the loss of forest hit its highest level in eight years last year, a jump driven in part by a sprawling effort to turn rainforest into rice and sugarcane plantations.

In total, the country lost 1,675 square miles of forest in 2025, up from 1,010 square miles the year before, according to an analysis of satellite imagery from Auriga Nusantara, an Indonesian think tank.

The surge in forest clearing is an abrupt reversal for Indonesia, which had been a bright spot in the global fight to halt deforestation. Over the last decade, it had managed to cut the loss of forest by almost two-thirds. Now, under President Prabowo Subianto, who came to office in 2024, forest-clearing is on the rise.

Auriga Nusantara told Reuters that a major factor in the shift is the expanding footprint of Indonesia’s Food and Energy Estate, which will stretch across more than 10,000 square miles of the island of New Guinea when complete. The estate will grow rice to feed a growing population and sugarcane to make biofuel, with the aim of curbing imports of food and energy.

Critics say that the estate is the largest deforestation project in the world, while U.N. advisors have warned the project is “jeopardizing the survival of local wildlife and endangering the cultural heritage of Indigenous communities that depend on them.”

Also driving the recent loss of Indonesia’s forest is the growth in mining, including the extraction of nickel to serve the global market for batteries. A typical vehicle battery contains 56 pounds of the metal, of which Indonesia is the world’s leading supplier.

Auriga Nusantara said that Prabowo is using a law aimed at spurring industry to weaken environmental protections. The Indonesian forestry ministry told Reuters, “The government continues to regularly evaluate all strategic programmes and ensure their implementation does not neglect forest protection.”