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Govt halts sheep meat imports to protect local producers
In response to a rise in low-cost goods shipped in from abroad, the government has temporarily suspended imports of sheep carcasses and lamb meat to reduce pressure on local farmers and protect the country’s livestock businesses.
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Taking a dip: Water buffalo cool down at a lake on Sumba Island, in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), on May 23, 2014. (Courtesy of Asian Development Bank)
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ndonesia has suspended imports of sheep carcass and lamb meat to reduce the pressure on local farmers and protect the country’s livestock businesses from foreign competition.
“We have temporarily stopped issuing import recommendations to [prevent] low-priced imported lamb [from] putting pressure on the farmers. This is our effort to protect farmers and allow their businesses to continue running,” Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman said in Jakarta on Monday, as reported by kompas.com.
He explained that the ministry, in a meeting with meat importers held on Nov. 26, had required the importing firms to sign a statement in which they committed to periodically submitting reports to the ministry detailing their import amounts and stocks.
The document also declared that they would stop distributing imported meat to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), including restaurants and small traders, and to heed the ministry’s import recommendations.
“We designed this policy to protect local farmers who are the backbone of the livestock industry,” Amran said.
The Agriculture Ministry’s animal husbandry and animal health director general, Agung Suganda, conducted a surprise inspection at 13 warehouses for imported lamb and goat meat on Nov. 24 to ensure that the entry and distribution of imported meat complied with prevailing regulations.
“If any violations are found, we will take firm action,” said Agung, as reported by kompas.com.
