Fruit market

Recently I heard the government talk about restrictions on imported fruit which might contain pesticides. The fruit would be subjected to quarantine regulations. Predictably the result was a price increase of the imported commodities.

Consumers are thereby expected to turn to local fruit, which in itself is a good thing, because local fruit farmers are in a desperate situation.

But the efforts toward solving the problem seem to me such a roundabout way. Why not focus on the problem itself? Are we much too used to beating about the bush?

On the threshold of the free trade era, why don't we start to open our minds, face reality and do something about the situation?

In agriculture we cannot even compete with Thailand and China, even less with Australia and America. What is wrong with us? We have plenty of land, fertile soil, favorable climate, abundant human resources and a potential market, but not much has been done in fruit cultivation.

If we really care about our farmers and are eager to develop agrobusiness, we have to do a lot of research and introduce new technology in fruit cultivation. And it is of utmost importance that farmers be given sufficient freedom to cultivate fruit so they have the opportunity to compete fairly in free trade.

The local fruit I like best is the Pontianak orange. It gives excellent juice and is reasonably priced. There used to be abundant supplies of Pontianak oranges, but nowadays they are becoming increasingly scarce.

I read in the media something about regulations being imposed on the originally prosperous Pontianak orange trade. Since then nothing has been done to reinstate the oranges to their glorious past. Occasionally there are Pontianak oranges in the market but they are dry and sour. Where are the good old days when I could serve them to my family? Would the imported Sunkist be a proper substitute?

Kompas daily recently printed a two-part article on the journey of the Pontianak oranges. I now understand the fate that has struck my favorite sweet oranges. It is really a sad story.

Allow me to call on the government or whoever to please let local, as well as imported, fruit to find its way to the market without restrictions. We all need fruit, especially children and the elderly.

JENNY LAURITZ KHOENG

Jakarta