Dias Prasongko, Jakarta – Chicken farmers from various regions in Indonesia held a demonstration in front of the State Palace on Tuesday, March 5. The farmers protested about the price of chicken at the level of smallholders and independent farmers, which they believe is too cheap.

"The price of chicken all over the country is too cheap. We, the people of Pak Jokowi, gather here to meet him so we can voice our frustration as small and independent smallholder farmers," a protester said.

The farmers come from West Java, Central Java, East Java to Kalimantan. This was the seventh protest demanding for an increase of chicken prices at the level of smallholders and independent farmers.

One of the farmers said that current selling price of chicken is far from the cost of production. In addition, most production sectors today are dominated by large companies; from upstream to downstream.

Sugeng Wahyudi, secretary general of the National Chicken Farmers' Organizations Association (GOPAN), said that over the past few months livestock facilities have continued to surge in price; starting from seeds, feed to medicine.

Sugeng said that if this continues, it would lead to bankruptcy for small chicken farmers. "The price of chicken must go be raised, but the means of production are burdensome, if it continues, they will lose businesses," he said.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/1182031/chicken-farmers-rally-at-state-palace-demand-higher-prices