Agricom.id, JAKARTA – Heading to Ramadhan and Idul Fitri, it needs to anticipate food issues in the society. This is serious because based on the previous experiences, heading to the two big days, there were issues about availability, the increasing or decreasing price of foods.

Knowing about these, in the hearing with Commission IV Indonesian Legislators, Minister of Agriculture, Syahrul Yasin Limpo (SYL) told that to fulfill the food for the next months, Ministry of Agriculture calculated the prognosis of procurement and needs of main foods based on the available data, such as, the data stocks in the previous years, the prediction of production in our country, the estimation of imports and the needs of food in the society. The food trade prognosis would be enough until May 2021.

“The rice would be surplus for about 12,56 million tons. The corn would be too for about 3,40 million tons. The rice is surplus because in March and April, the farmers are in massive crops,” he said in Senayan, Jakarta, Thursday (18/3), as in the official statement to Agricom.id.

Member of Commission IV Indonesian Legislators, Renny Astuti was sorry for the decision and statement of Minister of Trade to do one million tons of rice import. It is believed that this would make the farmers’ grain cheaper.

“The fact showed that the grain is mostly less than harga pembelian pemerintah. We suggest that SYL should explain the field facts to Minister of Trade,” she said.

The other member of Commission IV, Andi Akmal Pasluddin also disagreed with the plan about rice import. He thought that the decision would be contradictive with the data from Central Bureau of Statistic about the food stock and production saying that we have surplus rice.

“What Minister of Trade and Coordinator Minister in Economy told is unreasonable. We have to appreciate the farmers and Ministry of Agriculture that guarantee the food availability well,” he said.

In the hearing, he also did appreciate the anticipation that Ministry of Agriculture does to get the farmers’ grain though it is not the main job of Ministry of Agriculture.

”I do believe that SYL works fluently to be in synergy. We are confident that our farmers could produce our food namely rice,” he said.

In the meeting SYL also told what Ministry of Agriculture does to maintain the food need supply in the society during Ramadan and Idul Fitri in Covid-19 pandemic.

“We optimize the domestic food supply, accelerate import process for the food which could be fully supplied in the domestic, such as, soybean, garlic, cow meat, and sugar,” SYL said.

Based on the calculation until the second week of March 2021, it showed that the rice stocks kept in many storages, such as, Perum Bulog, milling, the traders, PIBC, and others, reached 6,79 million tons in total. The corn is surplus until May 2021 because the crop cycle always takes place in the early of rainy season.

“Other commodities, such as, onion, chili, hen meat, egg, sugar, and cooking oil are in good condition,” he said.

“Cow/buffalo meat, though the supply should be imported, it is predicted that until the end of May 2021, it would not be enough. We would do the best to fulfill the lack,” SYL said. (A2)