Importers snub govt call to boycott Australian meat

Importers snub govt call to boycott Australian meat

JAKARTA (JP): The government's call to switch imports of meat
from Australia to Ireland, India and Argentina has received a
cold response from local meat importers.

Chairperson of the Association of Indonesian Meat Importers
(Aspidi), Frieda Nalapraya, said on Saturday the government's
proposal was premature and provocative.

"Don't get emotional and do reckless things over it. Let's not
screw up by threatening to turn to others for our meat supply. We
have built a long and good relationship with Australia," she told
The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

Frieda suggested the government not halt meat imports from
Australia unless the Australian exporters refused to sell their
meat products to Indonesia.

She said Australia had been the biggest meat supplier for
Indonesia for years. Australia contributed around 80 percent of
Indonesia's total imported beef of 16,000 tons last year.

Minister of Agriculture Soleh Solahuddin said on Friday the
government was considering switching its import of meat from
Australia to other countries due to its fear that Australian meat
exporters would join the ongoing boycott against Indonesia.

Calls for a boycott toward Indonesia have been launched in
Australia by, among others, the Maritime Union of Australia and
the Australian Council of Trade Unions. They intend to show their
sympathy to the East Timorese, who voted overwhelmingly for
independence from Indonesia in the United Nations-sponsored
ballot on Aug. 30, but were forced to flee the area amid violent
attacks by pro-Indonesia militias.

"We have to immediately find alternative suppliers. We'll
arrange intensive negotiations with Ireland, Argentina and
India," Soleh said without explaining the cost and benefit of
choosing the three countries.

Frieda said she understood the government's concern of the
continuation of the supply but strongly objected to it choosing
India as an alternative supplier.

"Why India? It's totally unacceptable to import Indian meat
because we all know that Indian meat has a high risk of carrying
dangerous cattle diseases," she said.

She warned that the government had earlier this year canceled
its own plan to import the relatively cheaper Indian buffalo meat
after an Indonesian fact-finding team to India revealed
that fatal bovine diseases remained in parts of India, confirming
the fears of many Indonesian cattle growers that Indian meat
could bring dangerous cattle diseases into the country.

Frieda said Ireland and Argentina were the preferred options
because their meat carried a low risk of carrying cattle
diseases.

Ireland might be given the priority due to its cheaper prices,
she said.

"But it will take time in preparing the negotiations and
implementing the deal because we don't have any experience in
meat import from either Ireland or Argentina," she said. (cst)