TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Trade Ministry and Agriculture Ministry have promised to maintain food price stability, including chili and shallot. The recent hike in food price has been sparked by supply chain issues.
The synergy between Trade Ministry and Agriculture Ministry will be stepped up in a bid to stabilize food price. “Yes, we will [work together to] create a synergy,” said Enggartiasto Lukita, during his visit to Tanah Tinggi market, Tangerang, together with Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman.
According to Enggar, chili and shallot prices have been climbing. “Even though the supply is normal for now. No shortage. It means that production is sufficient because of chili and shallot harvests,” Enggartiasto said.
Enggar said one of the issues that has caused price hike is supply chain. “We will continue to develop the way to resolve supply chain issues. I expect that the President’s three instructions on supply availability, price, and farmers can be realized with the synergy,” he said.
The Trade Ministry observed that chili price has increased by 7% to 12% compared to last month. Red bird’s eye chili up to Rp46,000 per kg. Whereas red chili curly hit Rp36,000 per kg, shallot is currently priced at around Rp42,000 per kg.
Meanwhile, the average daily supply of chili at Kramat Jati Market is between 150 to 200 tons, which is actually above normal supply. However, it fell to 105 tons per day at one point. Likewise, shallot supply, which had fallen from the average of 85 to 90 tons per day at one point, currently stood at 78 tons per day.
“We want to find out the real condition of the downstream supply chain at Tanah Tinggi market. We have also monitored the condition of the upstream supply chain, thus we will try to identify the problems in chili and shallot [supply chain],” Enggartiasto said.
