Anggi M. Lubis, Jakarta – Underperforming domestic production has been largely attributed to surging food prices, including that of beef – which has seen its prices rise during the year due to a shrinking cow population and a heavy reliance on imports.
But in the country that sees chickens roaming in the streets of kampungs, the surging price of poultry in the last month has taken the nation by surprise as supply shortages cannot possibly be behind the hike.
Meat-price increases are common every year ahead of Idul Fitri, but the government and herders have said they had to do a double take when the price of chicken did not recover weeks after the holiday, which fell in early August this year.
"We were happy that the price of chicken did not plummet after Idul Fitri because we had prepared programs to aid herders in case they experienced losses due to price drops," Deputy Agriculture Minister Rusman Heriawan said.
The happiness soon turned into worry, he said, as prices stayed high nearly two months after. "This is a market anomaly, prices usually go back down after Idul Fitri," said Poultry Breeders Association chairman Anton J. Supit.
Chicken was marketed at around Rp 24,000 (US$2.11) per kilogram before the festivity. Prices skyrocketed to around Rp 40,000 per kilogram during Idul Fitri, and stayed at around Rp 34,000.
Agriculture Ministry data said the country estimated that it would produce 1.77 million tons of chicken this year. Data provided by the ministry also showed that annual chicken consumption was less than 4 kilograms per capita, which means national demand for the commodity was 1 million tons per annum lower than the national production.
The ministry also calculated that consumption in September was only 89,000 tons, while production that month was 124,000 tons.
"The problem must have lied within the trade system," Rusman said. He said that his ministry was currently deducing the large discrepancy between producers prices and that of retailers, which implies problems within the supply chain of chicken, to decide on what needed to be done to deflate the prices.
Rusman explained that while herders had sold their chickens for Rp 14,000 a kilogram, the meat was marketed to consumers with a gap of Rp 20,000 per kilogram. He said that the supply chain of chicken involved eight players including farmers, collectors, slaughter houses and retailers.
It has been reported that Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan was mulling whether or not to import the commodity to suppress prices, pending a recommendation from the Agriculture Minister.
Rusman said his ministry would discuss the matter with the Trade Ministry and would invite them to evaluate supplies. "Proof is all there that this isn't a mere supply issue," he said.