TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Government to intervene in market if egg price continues to skyrocket
Change Size
Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita (JP/Anton Hermansyah)
T
rade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita has threatened to intervene in the market if within one week relevant businesses – breeders, traders and integrator companies – cannot bring the egg price down.
After meeting with relevant stakeholders on Monday, the minister said his ministry would force integrator companies to push down the price, which reached Rp 32,000 (US$2.23) on Monday, up from the regular price of around Rp 20,000.
“We will ask the large integrators to release their stocks and we will sell them directly to markets if the price does not significantly decrease within one week,” he said, as reported by kontan.co.id, adding that integrators and breeders had to make a fair profit from the egg business.
He also required egg producers to report their supply chains to the government to prevent any stockpiling of the commodity. He said the government would take measures against those who did not do so.
During the meeting, Enggartiasto was informed about the reasons behind the egg price jump, including the decrease in production caused by the prohibition on breeders using antibiotic growth promoter (AGP) hormones because of health concerns.
The other reasons include extreme weather, the extended Idul Fitri holiday and speculators disrupting distribution chains.
Poultry Breeding Companies Association (GPPU) chairman Krissantono said egg production had declined by 10 to 15 percent because of these reasons. He underlined that the extended holiday had caused many chicken coops to not produce eggs for about 14 days.
Meanwhile, Animal Husbandry Feeds Businessmen Association (GMPT) Budi Utomo added that the increasing price of chicken feed had also contributed to the egg price increase. (bbn)
