Bollywood Beef

THREE days after announcing the ninth economic policy package on the import of cattle from India, Coordinating Minister of the Economy Darmin Nasution was already fielding complaints. In a letter sent in early February, General Chairman of the Indonesian Cow and Buffalo Breeders Association, Teguh Boediyana, asked the government to cancel the policy. "India is among the countries not yet free of the hoof-and-mouth disease," he said on Thursday last week.

The government's decision to open up the market to Indian beef imports was motivated by a two-year long rise in beef prices, which have now soared to Rp120,000-130,000 per kilogram. The price is double that of Malaysia, which has fewer cows and has green-lighted Indian imports. "The government has expanded the possibility of importing cattle or beef with a more flexible approach," indicated Darmin.

February 23, 2016