Indonesia is ramping up investment in improved crop varieties as part of a national drive toward food self-sufficiency, with both private breeders and government research institutions developing seeds better suited to local conditions and climate pressures. PT East West Seed Indonesia (a major seed company known locally as Cap Panah Merah) supplies improved varieties — including virus-resistant eggplant and weather-tolerant chillies — to more than 10 million vegetable farmers nationwide, while the state-backed Centre for Assembly and Modernisation of Biotechnology and Agricultural Genetic Resources maintains nearly 11,000 genetic plant samples and has developed high-yield soybean and salinity-tolerant rice varieties. The effort is particularly significant for soybeans, a critical ingredient in staple foods tofu and tempeh, where newer varieties can more than double yields compared with traditional strains, helping reduce Indonesia's heavy dependence on imports.