GOVERNMENT SHOULD ANTICIPATE DROP IN CHILI PRICES AFTER HIKE

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Jan 13 (Antara) - The government needs to anticipate the possibility of a "free fall" in the price of chili after the perishable commodity witnessed a spike in cost in various parts of the country in recent weeks.          The increase in the prices of chili, ranging from the normal rate of about Rp50,000 per kilogram (kg) to some Rp150,000-Rp200,000 per kg, triggered an outcry among consumers.          Moreover, prices, which were on the rise in at least 76 cities, contributed 0.47 percent to the country's inflation rate, which stood at 3.02 percent.          In the face of this condition, Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman has encouraged people and housewives across the country to promote the movement of growing chilies at home.          The minister's call encouraged several others, including the military circle in Surabaya, East Java, to echo the benefits of growing chili.          "We encourage the people to plant chili on their idle land or in their house yards," Surabaya's Rungkut Sub-district Military Command Chief Maj Supriyo Triwahono noted in Surabaya on Wednesday (January 11).

CHILI PRICES SOARING IN VARIOUS CITIES

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Jan 6 (Antara) - The prices of chili, one of the most important commodities in the country, have continued to skyrocket in the past few weeks.          Prices are on the rise in at least 76 cities, contributing 0.47 percent to the country's inflation rate, which stood at 3.02 percent.          Chili is being sold at varying increased prices in areas, such as West Papua and East Kalimantan, where the commodity's price has reached Rp200,000 per kilogram (kg), which is more than four folds that in Aceh Province, at Rp35,000 per kg.          The current per kg price of chili in Aceh has returned back to normal from Rp110,000 last week.          Chili is being sold at a steep price, reaching Rp200,000 per kg, in West Papua, notably in Waisai City of Raja Ampat District.          In Nunukan, North Kalimantan, the price per kg of chili is Rp150,000, while in Central Java, particularly in Banyumas District, it is sold at Rp120,000 per kg.