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Soybean prices expected to rise until May
The Trade Ministry says the trend will affect tempeh and tofu prices.
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Tempeh producer Noerhakim displays a plate of fried tempeh while working at his factory in Singaraja, Bali, on March 16, 2020. (JP/Anggara Mahendra)
T
he Trade Ministry has forecast that tempeh and tofu prices will rise in the coming months in line with a surge in United States soybean prices until May.
Trade Ministry domestic trade director general Oke Nurwan estimated that soybean prices would reach US$15.79 per bushel in May before declining in July to $15.74 per bushel for importers.
According to Business Insider data, soybean prices have hovered between $13 and $14 per bushel so far this year, compared to between $8 and $9 per bushel in the first half of 2020.
“The initial estimate is that tempeh prices will range from Rp 10,300 [72 US cents] to 10,600 per kilogram, while tofu prices will range from Rp 52,450 to Rp 53,700 a tray or Rp 650 to Rp 700 apiece,” Oke said during a press conference on Friday.
He noted that domestic soybean production was unable to meet current demand.
Tempeh and tofu producers are the biggest soybean importers in Indonesia, and most of their supply comes from the US. Statistics Indonesia (BPS) recorded that the country imported some 2.11 million tons of soybeans from January to October of last year, about 90 percent of which, or 1.92 million tons, was shipped from the US.
Read also: How to escape from the soybean import trap
