Trade Minister ponders potato import
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 10/22/2011 1:21 PM
After learning that the Agriculture Ministry only issues potato seed import permits, Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan says Indonesia should stop importing potatoes.
“But as we all know, the reality in the field is very different,” he said on Friday as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.
Gita said he would discuss potato consumption rates with
Agriculture Ministry officials to resolve the issue.
He said the issue was important because imported potatoes negatively influenced the local potato commodity.
The price of imported potatoes is Rp 2,200 (25 US cents) per kilogram, while the price of local potatoes is as high as Rp 6,000 per kilogram.
