Hotels,
Restaurants, catering, food services and related industries face difficult in
obtaining beef supply. Consequently, some small and medium-scale
restaurant/café businesses are forced to close down their businesses. Price of
beef is very expensive. Now, we have difficulty in finding beef supply. Feeder
cattle or seedstock is also not available. If there is any, the price is very
expensive so we cannot reap profit. Price of leader cattle is around Rp 2.5
million. These cattle are fattened before they are resold”, Afan Nugroho,
restaurants/café owner serving steak dishes, told Business News (1/17).
Some
businessmen are pessimistic over government’s attempts to achieve beef
self-sufficiency by 2014. This is considered a political lip service of the
related official, particularly the Agriculture Ministry. “We are tired. There
are no subsidies from the government, restaurant/café business like us have
difficult in obtaining beef.”
Beef
self-sufficiency, as planned by the government, is only possible with
downstreamization of beef industry. Two attempts that could help to meet beef
supply in a short time are artificial insemination and embryo transfer. These
two attempts demand seriousness of the government and related industry,
including slaughterhouse. But, even if downstreamization program is well
operating, it could only be carried out by large-scale businesses. As these
businesses have direct access to banking and business loans. “There is a
low-interest credit facility from the government. But, only large-scale
businesses that can obtain it as they are considered bankable”.
Chairman
of the Beef Committee of Jakarta Raya, Sarman Simanjorang, considers that beef
crisis could happen throughout 2013. The crisis has a consequence on thousands
of small and medium businesses, and the hotel, restaurant catering businesses
are threatened. Beef demand in 2013 designates quota of beef import at 80,000
ton consisting of 60 percent or around 48,000 ton of feeder cattle or
equivalent to 288,000 heads and the remaining is in the form of frozen beef at
32,000 ton nationally will highly the threaten sustainability of businesses in
Jakarta. Sustainability of tens of thousands of small and medium businesses
that need beef supply every day, such as meat ball, soto, sate, sausage, burger
traders, food traders and hotel, restaurants and catering businesses will be
threatened. “Beef is not only consumed by middle to upper class society, but
also by the lower class society. There are many of the lower class society
consuming meat balls made of beef”, Sarman Simanjorang, told Business News
(1/8).
In
2012, the government decreased beef import quota to 34,000 ton. Meanwhile,
market volatility has been occurring for a long time, Demonstration action to
the Agriculture Ministry demanding for additional quota, mass strike of
butchers and beef traders of DKI Jakarta is due to low stock and supply. The
consequence is that beef price soared to Rp 90,000 - 100,000. The normal price
is Rp 65,000 - 70,000. From import quota at 34,000 ton this year, the
government adds up to 8,500 ton for demand of processing industry. Total quota
for this year reaches 43,000 ton. “With this quota, Jakarta is the still in
shortage of beef stock”.
The
32,000 ton quota nationally cause price volatility/meat crisis in Jakarta. This
is predicted to happen throughout 2013 and will have a high consequence on the
fate of tens of thousands of small and medium businesses. “Meeting held by the
Beef Committee of Jakarta Raya on November 23, 2012 attended by twelve associations
resolved that demand for imported beef in 2013 reaches 85,000 ton. “And, this
demand intended for the following uses:
- >Non-NAMPA (National Meat Processing Association) Industry: 4,250 ton;
- Retail/meat shops (Demand of middle/upper class people and expatriates): 10,200 ton;
- NAMPA (National Meat Processing Association) Industry:17,000 ton;
- Hotel, Restaurant, Cafe and Catering businesses: 17,000 ton;
- Small and medium businesses (Meat ball, sate, noodle, burger, sausage traders, food stalls, and other): 36,550 ton
This
figure has been adjusted to demand of businesses in Jakarta for a year. “32,000
ton quota will not be sufficient”.
On
the other hand, local beef demand to meet market demand is still far from
expectation. Frequently, the government only has the data on paper. But, the
fact is that number of cattle is very low. Buffer regions which are expected to
supply local beef to Jakarta also experience shortage. Traders and
slaughterhouse have launched a strike as a form of protest against the
government. In November, some regions launched strike, such as in Surabaya,
Malang, Magelang, Ciamis, Tasikmalaya, Banjar, Depok, and Jakarta. The strike
is an indicator that they are in shortage of cattle, and it is a strong sign
for DKI Jakarta that Jakarta could not expect much or could not highly
dependent on buffer provinces. “They will not deliver their local cattle to
Jakarta if these regions are not experiencing surplus. Except if the DKI
Jakarta Govenor (Jokowi) will develop cattle farming in Jakarta. But, it is
impossible as there in no more vacant land of tens or hundreds of hectares for
cattle farms”.
To
anticipate meat crisis in Jakarta, the Beef Committee asked Jokowi to send a
letter of request for quota of imported beef at 50,000 ton. This amount could fulfill
demand of the businesses for a year (2013). A request will also be addressed to
the Coordinating Minister of Economy, the Minister of Trade, and the Minister of
Agriculture. “To provide business certainly to tens of thousands of businesses
in Jakarta, there is no other way than to set beef quota for DKI Jakarta”.
A
similar request is also addressed to the Government of Batam City of Riau
Archipelago Province who receives allocation of meet quota in large amount.
“The Beef Committee of Jakarta Raya will guard and fully support a special beef
quota for DKI Jakarta as it has a consequence on the fate of tens of thousands
of entrepreneurs, hundreds of thousands of workers, and Jakarta’s economic
growth”. (E)
Business News - January 09, 2013
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