Indonesia's Rice Price Is High, Badanas Reveals Due To Rising Production Costs
NUSA Dua - Director of Food Distribution and Reserves, National Food Agency (Bapanas) Rachmi Widiriani said the high price of rice in Indonesia could not be separated from the large production costs and the government continues to strive to increase farmers' income.
"Domestic rice, if we pay attention to it, is high, farmers also have the right to get a profit and now is actually a happy moment for farmers because their grain price is purchased on the HPP," said the Indonesia International Rice Conference which was held in Nusa Dua, Bali, quoted on Friday, September 20.
According to Rachmi, currently the price of grain and rice at the farmers is quite good, even so the government must be present in the middle, where farmers get good prices, consumers can also access rice at affordable prices but with good quality.
Rachmi said that the high price of rice can actually be anticipated by using seeds that excel with good quality seeds can be a driving force for the productivity of farmers so as to provide more decent results.
"If the seeds are good, productivity will increase, farmers will get better sales results, the price can be reduced for a long time. In addition, it can also be through fertilization and operational cost efficiency with the use of drones that can save 30 percent," he said.
SEE ALSO:
According to Rachmi, this can be one of the things that can be done to reduce production costs and hopefully the improvements that are being made can increase farmer productivity.
Previously, Country Director for Indonesia and Timor-Leste, East Asia, and Pacific World Bank, Juli Turk said that the price of rice in Indonesia was 20 percent higher than other ASEAN countries.
"We estimate that Indonesian consumers pay up to 20 percent more expensive for their food," he said.
This explains that the high price of rice in Indonesia is partly due to import restrictions and the government's decision to increase the selling price of rice so as to weaken agricultural competitiveness.