REGULATIONS ON HORTICULTURE IMPORT EXPECTED TO HELP FARMERS

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, May 17 (ANTARA) - The imposition of the trade minister's and agriculture minister's regulations on the importation of horticultural products next June is expected to help raise farmers' optimism and revive their spirit to cultivate horticultural crops.          The recent influx of imported agricultural products such as fruits into the country has caused farmers to complain of a decline in prices and has dashed their hopes of a better life through the cultivation of agricultural lands.          In this regard, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) for North Sumatra recently noted that the government needs to issue a trade regulation on the importation of these products to protect the farmers at home.          "Trade regulations on the importation of those goods should have been issued and implemented a long time ago. After all, at present, the threat of horticultural product imports has been felt not only by the farmers but also by the government, whose trade balance is now threatened with a deficit," observed Hervian Taher, the deputy chairman of Kadin for North Sumatra.          He said that the importation of various agricultural products such as soybean, maize, potato, fruits and vegetables had made Indonesian farmers, particularly those in North Sumatra, reluctant to focus on producing these products.         The farmers' reluctance is understandable, as the entry of foreign goods into the country has caused the sales price of their produce to drop.         Usually, while the farmers are harvesting their crops, there is a concurrent increase in imported horticultural products as importers attempt to increase their stocks, not to meet the current needs for the goods.          "This drives down the prices of the farmers' products during the harvest time, because traders or factories are reluctant to purchase their crops, citing the reason that they already have large stocks," he explained.          He reasoned that if the farmers became unwilling to cultivate horticultural crops, the government would then have to depend on imports, and this would eventually endanger the country, with its large population of over 237.6 million people.          "The nation's economy will be ruined if we depend on the imports, because this is not only a matter of stocks but also of prices at home, which could sky-rocket once we depend on imports," Hervian remarked.          Therefore, the government should not delay the implementation of the two ministerial regulations from the agriculture minister and the trade minister, respectively, on the importation of horticultural products.          Parlindungan Purba, a member of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD), remarked that his side would urge the agriculture minister, the trade minister and the Customs Excise office to draft regulations on the importation of horticultural products.          "The imposition of a regulation on the importation of horticultural goods can no longer be delayed because it concerns the fate of farmers," Parlindungan remarked.          According to Parlindungan, in addition to regulating the entry gates of horticultural products, such a provision should also regulate the volumes, types and arrival schedules of the goods.          The ministry of agriculture has so far delayed the implementation of these two regulations. The first of these is the agriculture minister's regulation no. 89 on the amendment of regulation no. 37 on the technical conditions and plant quarantine measures for fruits/vegetables entering Indonesia.           The second delayed regulation is the agriculture minister's regulation no. 90 on the amendment of regulation no. 18 on the conditions and plant quarantine measures for live plants, in the form of fresh tuber vegetables, entering Indonesia.          According to Agriculture Minister Suswono, through the two ministerial regulations, the government has fixed four entry gates for the importation of agricultural products, namely, the Belawan port of Medan (North Sumatra), Tanjung Perak port of Surabaya (East Java), Makassar port of South Sulawesi and Soekarno-Hatta airport of Jakarta.          Although the two regulations should have come into effect on March 19, 2012, their implementation was postponed for a number of reasons.          However, the government has decided to implement the two regulations on June 19, 2012.          In addition, the government has also drawn up a trade minister's regulation on the importation of horticultural products. This regulation will be put into effect on June 15, 2012.          When these three regulations come into effect in June, it is expected that farmers will be encouraged again, particularly due to the trade minister's regulation, which will boost prices.          According to Nugroho Setiadharma, the President Director of PT Supra Boga Lestari, the government's decision to control the importation of horticultural products through the trade minister's decree will increase the prices of horticultural products in the domestic retail market.      "The government has ruled that retailers will not be allowed to import horticultural products. The import of these products must be done through distributor channels," said Nugroho here on Wednesday.          As a result of this regulation, the supply chain will become longer, thus increasing the costs and prices. The regulation was issued with the Trade Minister's Decree No. 30/2012.          Nugroho pointed out that the compulsory use of distribution channels would lead to price increases, because distributors make extensive use of cold storage. "This component could boost costs and reduce the people's purchasing power," he added.          Chief Operating Director of Hero Supermarket Edison Manalu also expressed the same opinion, saying that the prices of horticulture products would increase because of the import restrictions.          "Logically, the price must rise because of the increase in transportation costs and burden expenses. So far, we are directly purchasing the goods from the importers. Retailers are still awaiting the implementation of the regulation on June 15, 2012," he remarked.***2*** (T.A014/a/INE/a014/R-BSR/A/A014) 17-05-2012 19:37:56