RI UNLIKELY TO ACHIEVE MEAT SELF-SUFFICIENCY IN 2014

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Oct 26 (Antara) - With its cattle population dropping this year, Indonesia, which consumes about 550 thousand tons of meat per year, seems unlikely to meet its meat self-sufficient production target in 2014.          "Seeing its cattle population decline now, it seems that Indonesia will face difficulties in meeting its meat self-sufficiency target in the near future. The government still needs at least five more years to bring the target into reality," Bustanul Arifin, agriculture and animal husbandry observer, said on Thursday.          In the past several years, the government, through the Directorate General of Animal Husbandry, set a target that in 2014 Indonesia should have been able to produce meat that met its domestic needs.          However, Indonesia's cattle population this year is believed to be lower than in 2012, which stood at about 16.4 million. As of October this year, Indonesia's cattle population dropped to 14.2 million.            Arifin said that Indonesia was able to meet its target, but needed five more years on conditions that the government gained full support from all government agencies, including supportive policies.          He said cattle self-sufficient production targets could be met only after the new government was elected, after the 2014 elections, because it needed a firmer policy and enforcement of the law.          Moreover, a large investment is needed to implement the self-sufficient production target, particularly in the upstream sector.          The present policies should be redesigned, including policies on breeding, fattening, distribution and the banning of slaughtering female cows assigned for breeding.          The animal husbandry observer said, unlike food crops, the target to achieve self-sufficiency in meat production could not be met hastily, but needs time and must be accomplished based upon complete calculations.          According to Arifin, with the present condition, the government should make efforts to meet domestic needs first and allow the next government to continue the program to achieve the meat self-sufficiency target.          Besides preparing supporting policies and enforcing the law, the government should also again conduct a census of stock, taking on Indonesia's cattle population.          Last March, Director General of Husbandry and Animal Health at the Agriculture Ministry Syukur Iwantoro revealed that the number of cows across the country included 15.421 million in 2011, while the number rose to 16.4 million in 2012.          "We remain optimistic that self-reliance in meat production can be achieved if it receives supports from all agencies," he said.          Therefore, the government hoped it would meet 85 percent of its needs for meat, which has reached 549 thousand tons per year.          However, latest data indicates that this year the number of cattle was only about 14.2 million cows, reflecting how the population of cattle dropped by 2.2 million.          According to Arifin, a meat self-sufficiency production target should refer to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), which stipulates that meat imports should be 10 percent lower than national domestic needs.          Looking at the latest census results, Indonesian meat imports should be about 14 - 15 percent below national meat needs.          Director General Syukur Iwantoro said the ministry of agriculture would make a constant effort to increase the population of cows and reduce beef and live cow imports to 10 percent of overall needs.          To this end, the government hopes it would develop calf breeding to raise young cows that would be bred to increase the number of cows for slaughtering.          But for the time being, besides supplies from domestic sources, beef needs would also be met by imports. For this, importation mechanisms would be arranged.          At the end of last year, when beef stocks continued to fall, Coordinating Minister For Economic Affairs Hatta Rajasa called on importers to import meat based on their respective quotas, hoping that the quota of 80,000 tonnes in 2013 would be increased to 100,000 tonnes, which was about 18 percent of the national need.          Now the government is also planning to import female cattle to be bred at home, yet investors have so far preferred to import cows for slaughtering because it was economically more beneficial.          Animal husbandry observer I Gusti Jelantik of Kupang's University of Cendana has expressed his support and appreciation for the Agriculture Ministry's efforts to import productive female cows to support cattle breeding in Indonesia.          "Besides supporting breeding at home, the importation of female cows will also accelerate the government's efforts to achieve its beef self-sufficiency program in 2014," Jelantik said on Friday.          He made the remarks in response to the agriculture ministry's efforts to encourage the importation of productive female cows to support cow breeding in the country.          Agriculture Minister Suswono said on Friday that investors have, in the past, preferred importing cows for slaughtering because they did not need to provide care for the animals and it was also more efficient, thus providing more immediate economic benefits.          "Investors only asked for permits for importing pedigrees and cows for slaughtering. No companies asked for import permits to import female cows," the minister said, when explaining the government's plan to commemorate the 33rd World Food Day in West Sumatra.          Suswono said he would review cow import permits of companies which did not import female cows. "The target of the ministry of agriculture is to achieve meat self-sufficiency in 2014 and to increase the nation¿s cow population.          In this respect, State-owned PT Rajawali Nusantara Indonesia (RNI) President Director Ismed Hasan Putro said it is time for the government to provide RNI with a permit to import cattle.          He also said PT RNI hoped the Ministry of Agriculture would end their providing permits to private companies to import cattle since, in the past, private companies allowed to import cows eventually created problems.          "Now is the time for the government to provide a permit for RNI to import cattle. It should no longer be pro-private firms. We guarantee that we can ensure meat supplies if allowed to import cattle," Putro said after attending a coordination meeting on food resilience at the office of the coordinating minister for economic affairs last week.          RNI, he said, is able to import 1,000 productive female cows per month, 1,500 calves, 3,000 pedigree cows and 3,000 cows for slaughtering. "Financially, we are ready and have a network in Australia. It is regrettable if the government does not utilize the state firm for importing cattle," he added.          After all, Indonesia will this month receive 75,000 head of cattle from Australia as part of the export quota to Indonesia.          Also, Indonesia has recently imported 6,000 head of live cattle from Australia to stabilize meat prices, which currently stand at Rp92,000 (US$8.4) per kilogram, the Trade Ministry's Secretary General Gunaryo said.          According to data from the ministry, 24,750 head of live cattle were imported by Indonesia between July and October this year.          This was in accordance with Ministerial Decree Number 699/2013 announced on July 18 last year, which cleared the way for the import of cattle. Cattle imports will be allowed until December 31.***3*** (T.A014/INE/B003) (EDITED BY INE) (T.A014/A/BESSR/Bustanuddin) 26-10-2013 18:47