Monday, October 12, 2015 2:30 pm

JAKARTA (From The Jakarta Globe) -- The Indonesian Pulp and Paper Association, or APKI, has reproached Singapore's supermarket ban on Indonesia's paper products following public outcry over forest fires that have caused thick haze to envelop the city state for weeks.

The NTUC FairPrice, Singapore largest supermarket chain, has stopped selling Asia paper products from Asia Pulp & Paper since Wednesday, following the Singapore Environment Council's decision to boycott companies that failed to clear itself from forest fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan.

APKI said the move was misguided and politically motivated.

"They need to understand that this is a natural disaster, and pulp and paper producers did not want this to happen," said APKI deputy chairman Rusli Tan.

"Why would we [intentionally] burn down our forests if we need wood for raw materials?" he asked.

Rusli dismissed a notion that the move would hurt Indonesia's paper exports.

"The [ban] was political, but I believe they will start importing [our products] again soon," Rusli said. "In trade, if our product is good and competitive, consumers will come."

APP, a unit of the Sinar Mas Group, is among the usual suspects of pulp and paper, and palm oil companies often blamed for forest fires that send hazardous smoke to neighboring Malaysia and Singapore every year.

The company said that it would cooperate closely with domestic and foreign authorities to address the escalating problem.