KPPU Suspected Long And Tiered Distribution Chain Causes Egg And Chicken Prices To Increase

Illustration (Pixabay)

JAKARTA - The Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) monitors food commodity prices during the first quarter or January to April period, throughout Indonesia, which is divided into 6 working areas. From the monitoring results, at the beginning of Ramadan, there was a very significant increase in prices for eggs and chicken meat.

KPPU Deputy for Studies and Advocacy Taufik Ariyanto said that from working areas I to VI, food commodity prices were observed to have increased by 10 to 30 percent.

"In general, except for beef, chicken, chili, eggs, it is relatively stable. Apart from these commodities, it is (stable) for the first period," he said at the KPPU press conference, Friday, April 16.

However, Taufik said, for several commodities, such as chicken and eggs, there were significant price hikes in the 6 working areas. According to him, several factors have caused food price fluctuations to occur.

"Several factors are suspected to be the cause for chili crop problems, weather factors. Then there is also a logistical problem, where there is some information in the field that states supply constraints. Supply constraints to enter the market are due to flooding, weather factors, and so on," he explained.

Then, said Taufik, another factor is the long and tiered distribution. This is also the focus of KPPU. This is because this factor can cause the price to be asymmetrical. This means that prices at the farm level are stable or falling, but prices at the consumer level actually go up.

Furthermore, Taufik said that the distribution channels that are still tiered and long from farmers to markets to consumers are homework that has not been completed to date.

"This is what we suspect. The suspicion that it occurs in chicken meat and chicken eggs. Where the price of chicken at the downstream level or at the consumer level has increased, but from several reports that we have monitored so far, the price at the farmer level has actually decreased," he said.

In the future, said Taufik, KPPU will monitor the asymmetric commodities and price fluctuations.