Coordinating Minister For Food Zulhas: Bulog Transformation Will Improve National Food Stability

Coordinating Minister (Menko) for Food Zulkifli Hasan. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

Coordinating Minister (Menko) for Food Zulkifli Hasan said that the transformation of Perum Bulog into an autonomous body directly under the President was carried out to improve the function of national food stabilization.

"As the farmers say when harvesting rice or corn, the price has dropped drastically. Therefore, food stabilization needs steps and this is what Bulog can do," said Zulkifli Hasan in South Lampung, quoted from Antara, Monday, November 11.

He said that the existence of Bulog's transformation into an autonomous body under the President was the right effort to improve the function of food stabilization.

"Indeed, there is a lot to be addressed regarding this cheap corn and rice harvest. And we are working hard to overcome this by restoring Bulog's stabilization function, so they can buy more farmers' crops," he said.

He hopes that with this change in function, Bulog can accommodate farmers' crops so that the price of corn and grain for farmers does not rise too high.

The response to the increase in corn prices and the absorption of harvests was said by the Chairman of the Association of Farmers Groups in Babatan Katibung, South Lampung Regency, Sukma.

"What is unfortunate for farmers this time when harvesting is that the price of corn is very cheap to below Rp. 5,000 per kilogram for dry corn," said Sukma.

He said the price of corn as long as it has not been dried currently ranges from Rp2,700 to Rp3,500 per kilogram.

"Previously, the price was Rp. 5,200 per kilogram with water levels of 16 for dry corn, and to dry this used services. For production costs, from planting to completing the harvest, it was Rp. 9 million," he said.

And the income earned by corn farmers with a normal production of 6-7.5 tons of wet corn is IDR 25 million.

"What we hope can be helped by the government to stabilize corn prices again. Because farmers are quite losing money right now at high production costs, while cheap selling prices are sometimes not absorbed," he added.