JP\/13CLOVE<\/p>\n
Clove farmers demand fund ahead of harvest<\/p>\n
M. Taufiqurrahman
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
Representatives of North Sulawesi clove farmers demanded on
\nMonday that the government provide capital injection to
\ncompensate a potential loss from the plunge in the commodity
\nprice ahead of a major harvest.<\/p>\n
Vice chairman of the solidarity forum of the North Sulawesi
\nclove farmers Ernest Weley said that Rp 200 billion (US$24
\nmillion) in zero-interest loan would be adequate to mitigate woes
\nfrom the declining trend of clove price.<\/p>\n
\"Farmers in North Sulawesi are in dire needs of funds to
\nprepare themselves for the coming harvest period because they are
\nalready short of money,\" he told reporters after a hearing with
\nthe House of Representatives Commision V on trade and industry.<\/p>\n
He said that the fund would be allocated to pay laborers, to
\nbuy new machines, and to finance storage of the commodity.<\/p>\n
Clove growers in North Sulawesi -- who account for 70 percent
\nof the whole population in the province -- are facing a severe
\nblow from the drop of the commodity price. Currently the price
\nstands at Rp 12,000 per kilogram and still shows a trend of
\ndeclining. As a comparison, the price peaked at Rp 85,000 in mid-
\n2001.<\/p>\n
North Sulawesi produces around 15,000 tons of clove per annum,
\nor around 25 percent of the total national production of around
\n60,000 tons. Currently, the domestic demand for cloves -- mainly
\nfrom cigarette manufacturers -- reaches 110,000 tons per year.<\/p>\n
Ernest said that as the domestic market was still short of
\nsupply, it did not make any sense that the price could drop to
\nthe current level.<\/p>\n
\"We suspect that there are certain parties who have illegally
\nimported cloves to close the gap between the demand and supply in
\nthe domestic market,\" he said, adding that imports of the
\ncommodity had been banned with a decree from the Minister of
\nIndustry and Trade since last year.<\/p>\n
He also suspected that major cigarette manufacturers had
\nplayed unfair practices by purchasing the clove directly from
\nfarmers while the crops were still half-grown.<\/p>\n
\"To supply their own needs, cigarette manufacturers also grow
\nthe commodity on their own plantations. It has also contributed
\nto the price decline,\" Ernest said.<\/p>\n
He said that the fortune of farmers in the Indonesian
\nnorthernmost province could further deteriorate in the wake of
\nthe harvest period, when there would be an abundant supply of
\nclove. He said that the price could fall to Rp 10,000 per
\nkilogram.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jp13clove-1447899208",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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