Jakarta, June 28 (Antara) - The government is preparing some 170
thousand heads of cattle, to meet the demand for meat during the fasting
month of Ramadan and the post-fasting Idul Fitri or Lebaran
festivities.
Besides, the government is also planning to increase the beef reference
price from the current Rp76,000 per kg to Rp85,000 per kg, in an effort
to help cattle farmers obtain incentives, so that they can raise
pedigree and feedlot cows.
However, in anticipation of the fasting month of Ramadan, the price of
meat has been increasing and is expected to reach between Rp100 thousand
and Rp130 thousands per kg in a number of provinces. Though, in several
other regions, the price of beef is reportedly still stable.
Therefore, the government is preparing about 170 thousands of cattle to
meet the need for beef during the fasting month which begins on Sunday,
June 29, 2014 (the country's second largest Muslim organization has
started fasting on Saturday, June 28).
Agriculture Minister Suswono, during a visit to West Java on Wednesday,
expressed his confidence that the need for meat during the fasting
month would be met. With a stock of 170,000 heads of cows, supplies of
meat during the fasting month and the Lebaran festivities will be
adequate.
"Therefore, we appeal to the public not to panic and rush to the market
to purchase meat exceeding their daily needs. Panic buying will only
scale up prices. The public should, therefore, purchase beef based on
their daily needs," the agriculture minister said when visiting the
Caringin Wholesale Market in Bandung, West Java, on Wednesday last week.
The actual food stocks in the current fasting month were adequate so prices were still inclined to be stable, he said.
There
was even an indication that meat prices had gone down from Rp90,000 per
kg to Rp86,000 per kg, the minister claimed.
After all, the government is planning to increase its meat reference
price from the current level of Rp76,000 per kg to Rp85,000 per kg. The
current level of Rp76,000 per kg was decided in 2013 through the Trade
Minister's decree No.46/M-DAG/KEP/8/2013.
"The current reference price is Rp76.000 per kg. That was decided when
the rupiah exchange rate was still Rp9,000 per US dollar. At present, I
want the price of meat to be set at Rp85,000 per kg," Trade Minister
Muhammad Lutfi said at his office in Jakarta on Friday.
Lutfi said that with a government-sanctioned price of Rp85,000 per kg,
cattle breeders would be able to obtain incentives which they could use
to increase investment, particularly in the feedlot cow business.
"I am afraid the price will drop to a level below Rp85,000 per kg if
the government does not take a policy decision and coordinate with the
Agriculture Ministry. This would discourage breeders and there would be
no more parties raising cattle. If this happens, everyone will only
import the meat and the country will then depend on imports," Minister
Lutfi added.
The government-sanctioned price would serve as a reference for the
government to carry out feedlot and imports of slaughter cows, he said.
In the previous ruling, the government had allowed cattle imports if
the price of beef at home was over the reference price of Rp76,000 per
kg.
In the trade minister's decree in 2013, it was mentioned
that the import of the needed beef or cattle should be about 80 percent
of the one year approved accumulative import volume.
Virtually, particularly in the face of the fasting month, the price of
beef across the country has increased, though in some regions meat
prices are still stable.
Some regions needed increased stocks of a number of food products like
soybean and beef, agriculture minister Suswono admitted.
Regarding
the price of beef, which could be increasing, the agriculture minister
said that the ideal price of beef now was about Rp86,000 per kg. If the
price goes lower than that, it would affect breeders and that they would
no longer be encouraged to run their cattle ranches.
Beef prices in a number of regions in the face of the fasting month
have increased in a range of about Rp100,000 and Rp130,000 per kg.
The highest price was found in Aceh Province, where a kilogram of meat is sold at Rp130,000.
The price of beef had increased and was expected to reach a range of
Rp110,000 and Rp130,000 per kg, said Sofyanuddin, head of the Trade,
Industry and Cooperatives Service of Aceh, on Thursday.
The price of meat on regular days was set at Rp80,000 and Rp90,000 per kg only, he disclosed.
"The price of beef always increases before the fasting month. It is caused by high demand," said Sofyanuddin.
Meat in the Sumatran province of Bengkulu, particularly in the district
of Rejanglebong, has also increased from about Rp95,000 to Rp110,000
per kg.
"Beef prices have, in the past several days, risen from Rp95,000 to
Rp110,000 per kg," said Atik (35), a resident of Air Bang Housing
complex, Curup Tengah sub-district, on Wednesday.
The same increase also takes place in North Sumatra.
Traders at Pasar Simpang Limun in Medan, the capital city of North
Sumatra province, said prices had gone up by about Rp5,000 per kg.
"It
has increased by Rp5,000 per kg. Last week it was still Rp95,000 per kg
but now it has reached Rp100,000 per kg. Possibly, it will rise to
Rp110,000, next week," M Yusuf, a trader in Simpang Limun Market, said
on Thursday.
However it was reported that the price of meat in several other regions
such as in Malang, East Java, and Sawahlunto, West Sumatra, was still
stable.
There would be no increase in meat prices during the fasting month and
the Lebaran festivities, Director of Malang's Slaughter House Djoko
Sudadi assured, adding that cow stocks were adequate in Malang.
He said that the price of imported beef, which was previously set at
Rp90,000 per kg, had even gone down to Rp86,000 per kg. The price of
local beef is still at a range of RpRp88,000 and Rp90,000 per kg.
In Sawahlunto, the price of beef is Rp100,000 per kg, but is still considered stable.
"The price does not increase before Ramadan. It is stable at Rp100,000
per kg," said trader Iskandar in Sawahlunto on Thursday.***2*** |
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