Policy on soybean cake affects farmers<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government's recent decision to lift
\nrestrictions on soybean cake imports is likely to hurt domestic
\nfarmers in the short term, an academician says.<\/p>\n
Professor Bungaran Saragih, the director of the Bogor
\nAgricultural University's Center for Development Studies, said
\nthis week that lifting import restrictions at this time would be
\ndisadvantageous to farmers.<\/p>\n
He acknowledged, however, that it would have to happen sooner
\nor later.<\/p>\n
\"When the government still limited soybean cake imports, it
\nwas only a matter of time before the restrictions were removed,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
But under the current conditions, he said, farmers would still
\nhave a long way to go before they could achieve the government's
\ntarget of making the country self-sufficient in soybeans by the
\nend of the Sixth Five-Year Development Plan period in 1999.<\/p>\n
\"I think the government's target is too ambitious. It will
\ntake us another five to 10 years before we can become self-
\nsufficient in soybeans,\" Saragih said.<\/p>\n
Director General of Food Crops Amrin Kahar said earlier this
\nyear that the government's program for the current (1996\/97)
\nfiscal year was to sustain the country's self-sufficiency in rice
\nand strive towards self-sufficiency in maize and soybeans.<\/p>\n
He expected the country to reach self-sufficiency in soybeans
\nby 1999, when productivity could reach about three tons per
\nhectare, up from the present 1.1 tons per hectare.<\/p>\n
Soybean production last year increased by 7.49 percent to 1.6
\nmillion tons over the 1994 level.<\/p>\n
Saragih pointed out that Indonesian soybeans can not yet
\ncompete with imports, such as those from the United States and
\nChina, which are higher in productivity and quality.<\/p>\n
In order to become more competitive, he said, Indonesian
\nsoybean farmers must be capable of choosing the right farming
\ntechniques, an aspect which they generally lack.<\/p>\n
Saragih said that the government should focus its self-
\nsufficiency targets on other commodities, such as vegetables and
\nfruit. \"These have potential and we could actually do well
\nwithout imports,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The government in April removed restrictions on soybean cake
\nimports after years of requiring poultry feed producers -- which
\nuse soybean cake as a raw material -- to buy a certain amount of
\nlocally-produced soybean cake for every unit they import.<\/p>\n
In a deregulation package earlier this month, the government
\nalso allowed general traders -- besides feed producer-importers
\n-- to import soybean cake.<\/p>\n
In 1993, the local-to-import ratio was reduced from 40:60 to
\n30:70. It is presently at 20:80. The measures are expected to
\nprepare local soybean cake producers to face the total lifting of
\nimport restrictions. (pwn)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/policy-on-soybean-cake-affects-farmers-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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