Jakarta, Dec 8 (ANTARA) - As national meat stocks continue to fall
short, the government has called on importers to import meat based on
their respective quotas, hoping that next year's quota of 80,000 tons
would be increased to 100,000 tonnes.
Coordinating Minister For Economic Affairs Hatta Rajasa made the appeal
after he learned that the shortage of stocks was caused by importers
not yet importing enough meat, based on their given quotas.
"We have calculated the need for national stocks and ordered meat based
upon beef import allocations, but shortages still exist because
importers have not yet imported meat based upon their quotas. So, we
call on them to carry out the imports immediately," said Hatta at the
Presidential Palace in Bogor, West Java, last week.
He warned importers who had obtained licenses for the importation of
beef to carry out their obligations immediately, saying importers should
take his appeal seriously.
"I hope they would carry it out soon. If not, they will get firm warnings," the chief economic minister stressed.
He further said the government would interfere in an effort to reduce
increasing meat prices. If imports do not soon arrive, the minister
asked that local cattle be slaughtered to meet domestic demands.
Hatta said he had received a report that large numbers of cattle were
available in the eastern regions to meet the demand in Java. "Cattle
stocks are adequate, but we need speedy transportation to Java from the
eastern regions," he said.
In the meantime, Agriculture Minister Suswono said he had received a
report indicating that the shortage of meat was caused by the absence of
supplies from slaughterhouses. Slaughterhouses, however, said they had
received an order through circulars to stop slaughtering cattle or risk a
fine of Rp25 million.
"The
threat transmitted through a circular really existed, I have seen it,"
Suswono said, adding that the circular was the reason why stocks have
fallen and triggered price hikes.
He said that one of the incidents was found in East Java and has been reported to police.
He also promised to check the licenses of importers who had not yet
fulfilled their obligations. "We want to make sure about whether they
were really importers. If they are only people who are making money from
certificates or licenses (having sold them to third parties), we will
stop them," Minister Suswono said.
Further,
the agriculture ministry has ordered slaughterhouses to butcher cattle
based upon available stocks so that local markets would have enough
supplies. In that way, the need of local meat stocks could be met.
Besides local socks, imports should also be carried out immediately to
meet the needs for next year. Although the government has set itself
the target of importing 80,000 tonnes of meat, it seems that it still
needs to increase the quota.
Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan said on Friday that the quota for meat
imports in 2013 could be larger than the quota for this year. It has
been agreed (during a meeting with the coordinating minister for
economic affairs, Hatta Rajasa) that the quota for meat imports in 2013
will be set at 80,000 tonnes, an increase from 34,000 tonnes this year.
"Data from various sources has indicated that the quota of 80,000
tonnes will not be sufficient in 2013," said the minister.
Gita added that the quota for meat imports in 2013 would possibly increase from 100,000 tonnes to 105,000 tonnes.
He said that it was possible to increase imports exceeding the present
quota figure as decided in the previous meeting with the coordinating
minister for economic affairs because, after a review was made at the
trade ministry, there was new data that required the government to
increase the import quota.
"We have to maintain price stability. The price should not be too high
or too low, and for this we have to maintain the normal demand and
supplies," the Trade Minister said.
Yet, the trade ministry has not yet decided whether it will increase
the country's beef import quota in 2013, Bachrul Chairi, acting director
general for external trade of the Ministry of Trade, said on Friday.
"We still need to discuss if it is viable to increase the beef import
quota. As of now, no plans have been made," he said. At present, the
ministry will focus its attention on stabilizing meat prices,
particularly in Jakarta and the satellite towns of Bogor, Depok,
Tangerang and Bekasi.
He noted that the increase in meat prices is expected to reach 13
percent in 2013. "Meat prices increased by 5.8 percent in 2011, but this
year, it has reached 13 percent," Bachrul said.
Besides importing beef to increase stocks in 2013, the government is
also planning to import high-quality calves in an effort to increase
cattle production in Indonesia and reduce the importation of frozen
meat.
"We have estimated that the per capita beef consumption in 2013 will
reach 2.2 kilograms, up 16 percent from 1.9 kilograms this year. The
government has set the beef import quota for 2013 at 15 percent of the
total demand of 500,000 tons," Deputy Minister of Agriculture Rusman
Heriawan said.
Therefore, the government will import high-quality calves, which will
later be used in breeding programs across the country, so that the
country can eventually ramp up cattle production and reduce its
dependence on imported frozen beef, he explained.
"For
this year, the importation quota, set at 92,000 tons, included the
importation of calf as well as frozen meat. The government also
increased the imported frozen meat quota for next year to 80,000 tons,
doubling this year's quota of 38,000 tons," Rusman pointed out.
Although
the quota has been increased, he said, Indonesia should strive for
self-sufficiency in meat production. "Indonesia should not remain
dependent on imported beef supplies. The government is making efforts to
make Indonesia self-sufficient in meat," Rusman continued.***2***
(T.A014/INE )
(T.A014/A/KR-BSR/A/A014) 08-12-2012 16:47:0 |
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