Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesian Trade Minister Budi Santoso has assured that staple food prices in areas affected by the recent eruption of Mount Anak Krakatau remained stable, with supplies secured.
He said that price monitoring was conducted through the Market and Basic Needs Monitoring System (SP2KP) across the country.
“Since SP2KP covers all districts and cities, our data shows that prices are actually stable,” he told reporters in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Budi stressed that the Ministry of Trade continued to monitor price fluctuations across Indonesia’s districts and cities, including disaster-affected regions, to mitigate potential distribution bottlenecks and price spikes caused by natural disasters.
Turning to agricultural commodities, Budi addressed recent price fluctuations in several commodities like eggs and broiler chicken, saying that the government is not only working to curb price spikes at the consumer level, but also preventing prices at the producer level from plummeting.
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He pointed out that the reference selling price for eggs is set at Rp30,000 (around US$1.71) per kilogram. However, the price recently dropped to Rp22,000 per kilogram.
Meanwhile, the price of broiler chicken meat had temporarily fallen to Rp34,000 per kilogram, well below the reference price of Rp40,000 per kilogram.
According to Budi, this situation threatens the viability of poultry farmers, as production costs end up exceeding selling prices.
The national average price of eggs currently stands at Rp26,600 per kilogram. He noted that adjusting toward the reference price is vital for ensuring poultry farmers’ operations can continue in the long-term.
“Government intervention is not only aimed at curbing price hikes, but also addressing price drops. We must prevent producers from going out of business,” the minister said.
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Translator: Maria Cicilia, Raka Adji
Editor: Bayu Prasetyo
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