REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, DENPASAR - Imported soybean price increases from 7,200 IDR per kilograms (kg) to 9,200 per kg as fluctiating IDR exchange rate cause uncertainty to current economy. Head of Indonesian Tofu and Tempe Cooperative (Kopti) in Bali, Sutrisno, hopes that state owned logistic agency, Perum Bulog, will handle soybean trade to control its price. 

"Bulog cannot import soybean because it still awaits permit from the Ministry of Industry and Ministry of Trade," Sutrisno said on Wednesday.

He expected Bulog could control the soybean price in the market. Soybean supply including its import currently is handled by private sector and its price depends on the IDR exchange rate against USD. About 85 percent of soybean needed in Bali is imported and only 15 percent of local production.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Rusman Heriawan hopes President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will immediately instruct Bulog to stabilize soybeans price. Now, 75 percent of national supply is from imported soybean.

In 2012, soybean production reached 570 thousand tonnes. Soybean production has now reached 600 thousand tonnes, while needs of soybean per year reached 2.5 million tonnes. Soybean is raw material for tofu and tempe, traditional food which complement Indonesian daily diet. 

Ikuti Whatsapp Channel Republika