Minister assures that rice supply is adequate

JAKARTA (JP): State Minister of Food Ibrahim Hasan assured yesterday that the country's rice supply is adequate despite the significant decline in production due to this year's drought.

He told reporters after meeting with President Soeharto at Bina Graha Presidential Office that the National Logistics Board (Bulog) currently holds a stock of 800,000 tons of rice, while "we are waiting for more rice from abroad as loan payments".

"We expect that by December, an additional 500 tons of rice- loan payments will arrive," he said.

Ibrahim, who is concurrently the chairman of Bulog, said that the repayment of offshore rice-loans has already reached 400,000 tons.

The minister warned that the drought, which has forced a drop in Indonesia's rice production this year, will likely continue affecting the commodity until February.

In Indonesia, the rainy season usually starts in September and lasts until April.

The Central Bureau for Statistics announced last week that the country's unhusked rice production decreased by 4.4 percent to 38.3 million tons in the January-August period from 40 million tons in the same period of last year.

Director General of Food of the Ministry of Agriculture Amrin Kahar said on Tuesday that this year's rice output is estimated to fall short of the government's target by 3.69 percent.

Amrin explained that the country will likely produce only 46.40 million tons of unhusked rice this year, instead of the targeted 49.17 million tons.

Ibrahim also said yesterday that Bulog will soon launch a wide-scale market operation to buy rice at a price level above the official floor price.

"We will buy husked rice for Rp 665 (about 30 U.S. cents) per kilogram in this market operation," he said.

Ibrahim did not state when exactly the operation will start.

The government decided early this month to raise the floor price of husked rice by 11 percent to Rp 657 beginning next year.

About 90 percent of Indonesia's population, the world's fourth largest, consume rice as their main staple. Indonesia became self-sufficient in rice in 1984 after being the world's largest rice importer for decades.

The government announced recently that rice production must increase by six percent next year to maintain that rice self- sufficiency.

The objective is expected to be met by encouraging farmers to use urea-tablet fertilizer. (hdj)