Beddu says Bulog holds enough commodity stocks<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Chairman of the National Logistics Agency
\n(Bulog), Beddu Amang, gave assurances yesterday that his agency
\nholds sufficient stocks of commodities to see the country through
\nthe coming festive season.<\/p>\n
Beddu told journalists at his office that people should be
\nable to enjoy the festivities without food price increases, which
\nusually occurs as festive season approaches.<\/p>\n
The upcoming major festivities in Indonesia include this
\nmonth's Christmas and year-end fiestas, as well as Chinese new
\nyear and the Islamic fasting month and Idul Fitri holiday, which
\nwill fall early next year.<\/p>\n
"Everything is secured: rice, flour, sugar. Their prices are
\ncurrently stable. If they begin to fluctuate heavily, we will
\nimmediately intervene in the market. If necessary, we will import
\nsuch commodities," Beddu said after inducting 49 officials at his
\noffice, five of whom are of the first echelon.<\/p>\n
The newly-inducted officials are not new to Bulog. Under
\nPresidential Decision No. 51\/1995, dated July 15, 1995, all Bulog
\nemployees automatically became civil servants, paid by the
\ngovernment. Yesterday's ceremony was held to mark the change in
\nthe officials' status.<\/p>\n
Beddu reported that his agency has earmarked 90,000 tons of
\ncrude palm oil (CPO), the main raw material for cooking oil, for
\nthe coming festivities. The amount is much lower than last year's
\nfigure of 150,000 tons.<\/p>\n
"This is the first phase only. This amount of CPO is used as
\nbuffer stocks to maintain CPO prices at the current level of Rp
\n1,400 (61 U.S. cents) a kilo," Beddu said. "And we have been able
\nto keep the current level of CPO prices for more than one month."<\/p>\n
Last June, Bulog required CPO producers to contribute part of
\ntheir production to the buffer stock at a government-set price in
\norder to support its market operations to bring down cooking oil
\nprices to Rp 1,400 per kilogram from nearly Rp 2,000 by this
\nmonth.<\/p>\n
Rice<\/p>\n
Beddu also reported that Bulog's rice stocks, the country's
\nmain diet, is currently 1.47 million tons, the highest level
\nsince he assumed Bulog's chairmanship early this year.<\/p>\n
"This amount is enough for the consumption of civil servants
\nand members of the Armed Forces for nine to 10 months," Beddu
\nnoted.<\/p>\n
The large rice stock, he said, was generated from both the
\nagency's domestic procurement and by this year's imports and the
\ncarry-over of last year's imports.<\/p>\n
Although most Indonesian farmers are currently entering the
\nrice-planting season, Bulog can still collect some 35,000 tons of
\nrice per month from farmers, mainly in Central, South and
\nSoutheast Sulawesi, for its buffer stocks.<\/p>\n
Bulog targets to import up to one million tons of rice during
\nthe current fiscal year, which ends next March. Last fiscal year,
\nBulog signed import contracts for 1.8 million tons of rice, some
\nof which will be shipped during the current fiscal year, Beddu
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He acknowledged that imported rice, especially from Myanmar
\nand India, is often of poor quality. He gave assurances that
\nBulog will reprocess low-quality rice using blowing techniques
\nand by mixing the poor-quality grain with better-quality rice.<\/p>\n
He promised that Bulog would continue importing rice to
\nfurther increase its buffer stocks and to dampen the increases in
\nrice prices, which normally take place between the beginning of
\nrice planting season in October until the start of the harvest
\nseason in April.<\/p>\n
"However, rice prices declined slightly last month. This is
\nsurprising because rice prices usually rise during a time of
\nscarcity," Beddu said.<\/p>\n
Beddu predicted last September that rice prices were likely to
\nclimb by between 1.2 percent and 1.8 percent each month from then
\nuntil February in response to the end of the harvest months and
\nthe beginning of the planting season. (rid)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/beddu-says-bulog-holds-enough-commodity-stocks-1447893297",
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