JAKARTA - Beef and buffalo meat surplus after Eid-ul-Fitr this year is lower than previously estimated. Based on the Ministry of Agriculture’s Directorate of Veterinary Public Health’s temporary calculations, beef and buffalo meat surplus until the end of June is estimated to reach 2,001 tonnes, lower than the previous estimate of 2,450 tonnes.
“We can ensure that beef and buffalo meat provision during Ramadan as well as on and after Eid-ul-Fitr is adequate, with a 2,001-tonne surplus from a prognosis of 2,450 tonnes,” Director of Veterinary Public Health Syamsul Ma’arif told Bisnis Indonesia, Friday (14/6).
Previously, the ministry’s Directorate General of Animal Farming and Health estimated that beef and buffalo meat demand in May and June would reach 123,105 tonnes with local meat availability of 72,579 tonnes. To fill the 50,529-tonne deficit, the government prepared 81,273 cows and buffalos, equivalent to 16,251 tonnes of meat, in May, and for June the government has prepared 59,746 cows and buffalos, equivalent to 11,946 tonnes of meat.
Demand fulfillment in May and June has also been supported by the availability of 9,537 tonnes of meat and offal in importer warehouses as well as 8,333 tonnes in the Bureau of Logistics (Bulog). 12,359 tonnes of meat and offal are expected to enter Indonesia this month.
“In principles, during Ramadan staple food commodities were under control and in line with our prognosis,” Mr Ma’arif concluded. (MS)