THE country is the world’s third largest rice producer with the grain being a staple on dining tables all over the country. However, Indonesians have been struggling with soaring rice prices in the last few months.
As of Wednesday, local media reported that rice prices in some regions across the country are still skyrocketing, ranging from 12,000 to 17,000 rupiah (RM3.57 to RM5.06) per kilogramme, the highest in its history.
The average normal price should be around 9,000 rupiah (RM2.68).
Revenues of rice sellers in traditional markets were reportedly dropping, while restaurants revealed that they had to reduce the portions served to customers because they could not easily raise dish prices.
The surging rice prices also reportedly triggered price hikes in other basic ingredients, such as onions and chillies.
Secretary-General of the Market Sellers Cooperation Center Ngadiran said rice prices started increasing four months ago.
“Fluctuations in prices of staple food are normal to happen, but this one is the most unpredictable increase, with no clear factors,” he said.
The Indonesian government had revealed some factors responsible for the surging prices.
President Joko Widodo said rice production nationwide had been reduced due to crop failure brought by extreme climate change.
“There is such a thing as an extreme change in weather, which disturbs the harvesting and then reduces the production, making the price go up. But the price hike in rice occurs not only in Indonesia, but also all countries across the globe,” Joko said recently.
According to the National Food Agency, Indonesia needs no less than five million tonnes of rice for January-February, or 2.5 million tonnes each month. However, the country only produced 900,000 tonnes in January and 1.3 million tonnes in February.
Joko said that as one of the solutions to make staple food accessible, the government had distributed rice assistance for middle-lower income families, providing 10kg of rice every month.
Local media reported that hundreds of people in various regions were willing to queue for hours in order to get the rice provided by the government through market operations.
The Presidential Staff Office said on Monday that rice prices would not likely fall in the near future as food demand during the Aidilfitri period is high.
The office added that another factor contributing to the soaring price is rising labour costs, particularly ahead of the Aidilfitri celebration day and holiday season.
Agricultural observer Bustanul Arifin from the University of Lampung in Sumatra Island predicted that the price hike would likely last till the April 2024 harvest season. — Xinhua
