The Jakarta Post
Soybean importers are refusing to implement a government-ordered price ceiling as soaring United States soybean prices leave the Indonesian tempeh and tofu market in a state of flux. Indonesian Soybean Importers Association (Akindo) chairman Yusan said on Jan. 20 that the Agriculture Ministry’s price ceiling of Rp 8,500 (61 US cents) per kilogram was not profitable compared to the average Rp 9,500 per kg that members paid to import the commodity. Thus, only two importers, publicly listed PT FKS Multi Agro and PT Gerbang Cahaya Utama (GCU), have implemented the price ceiling thus far. “This market operation to cap prices actually burdens importers. It does not make sense,” Yusan told lawmakers of Commission IV, which oversees agriculture, at a House of Representatives hearing in Jakarta. Read also: Tempeh tipped as Indonesia’s next big export to United ...