Import Evaluated Every Three Months
Monday, April 11, 2011
Monday, April 11, 2011
JAKARTA (AFP): The Government will improve the routine monitoring and evaluating the realization of the import of meat every three months. This is in anticipation of the entry of illegal meat imports into the domestic market.
Actual imports of meat until March 2011 had reached 26 000 tonnes of quota in 2011 as much as 72,000 tons. According to the Minister of Agriculture Suswono, total meat needs of society this year reached 423,000 tons, with imports amounting to 25 per cent target.
Suswono said the government is targeting the beef import reduced gradually to pursue self-sufficiency in meat in 2014. Imports of meat, he said, only 10 percent of national needs.
To that end, the Ministry of Agriculture will optimize the supply from local farmers to meet the needs of domestic meat. "The government will reduce the amount of imported meat to live a quarter of the national needs. In fact, if we can self-sufficient in meat," he said in Jakarta, Sunday (10 / 4).
According Suswono, the government will make a reduction of meat imports about 5 percent per year. Based on data from Directorate General of Animal Husbandry and Animal Health Ministry of Agriculture said the needs of beef this year reached 424,000 tonnes with 316,100 tonnes of supply of local meat, and beef supplies going to reach 119 703 tonnes or equivalent to 665,000 individuals.
On the other hand, East Java Beef Farmers Forum was deeply disappointed with government policies that raise beef import quota of 50,000 tons to 72,000 tons for 2011. The addition of the import quota was believed to eliminate the potential for local beef sales to Rp 293 billion.
Chairman of East Java Cattle Breeders Forum Budi Agustomo rate, the government to prioritize short-term interests for the sake of stabilizing the price of meat at the expense of local farmers.
"We are very disappointed with government policies that strongly favor the local cattle farmers," he said in a separate place.
According to him, the additional quota of 22,000 tonnes of beef imports equivalent to 120,000 more local breeder cows with the potential loss of potential revenue amounting to Rp 293 billion. He explains, every year the cattle industry in the country reached Rp 4.8 trillion.
"The rise in meat imports quota will greatly reduce the price of beef cattle at the local farmers because the margin of imported meat and meat prices locally very large," he said.
He added that the price of fresh beef imports cheaper around Rp 40,000 per kilogram (kg) to Rp 46,000 per kg, while the price of cattle from local ranchers around Rp 55,000 per kg to Rp 60,000 per kg.
As is known, East Java is the center of the largest beef cattle producer and contribute 20 percent of national beef cattle production.Based on data from the East Java Provincial Animal Husbandry, dairy farmers in East Java is able to produce 136,000 tons of beef per year, while meat demand in East Java to reach 55,000 tons per year, so there is an excess 81,000 tons were sold to other regions, such as West Java, Jakarta, and Banten.
Related to this, members of the House of Representatives Commission IV Viva Yoga Mauladi earnestly urged the government to run the commitment to gradually reduce the import of meat. It was an attempt to attain self-sufficiency target meat 2014. "This must be serious and earnest," he said.
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Therefore, Viva Yoga asserted, Director General of Livestock Kementan should reform the policy to target self-sufficiency in meat merealisaskan 2014, the start of the breeding strategy, cultivation through artificial insemination and combating disease, up to an effort to increase participation of local farmers in helping the program.
He also requested that the meat import policy is not to shut down a local breeder. This is because they bear the impact of the high price of local meat due to a flood of imported meat in the domestic market.
On the other hand, Viva Yoga warned, imports of meat delegated authority from the Ministry of Agriculture to the Ministry of Trade is not just a mob of meat such as moving house. For that, the government must be firm in carrying out the import of meat, and the Ministry of Commerce should not be imported if there is no volume recommendations from the Ministry of Agriculture.
"If it is not regulated clearly and forcefully, this will trigger a deviation of policy, because the data owned by the two ministries are usually different. Companies black importer should not be a perpetrator because it proved to be the cause of the destruction of the flesh trade system," he said. (Andrews)
