Indonesia starts rice import from Vietnam, Thailand to stabilize domestic stocks

The Indonesia Logistics Bureau (Bulog) received on Friday 5,000 tons of rice imported from Vietnam at the Tanjung Priok Port, the agency said.

The import is part of the 200,000 tons of rice that the country has targeted to import by the end of 2022. In total, it has planned to import 500,000 tons up to February 2023.

Indonesia, one of the largest rice consumers worldwide, is set to import rice from Thailand, Pakistan and Myanmar to fulfill its domestic stocks.

“We need to import rice because there will be no harvest time in January and February 2023, while the demand for rice usually increases at the end of a year, from 30,000 tons per month to 170,000 tons per month. The government’s reserve stock is not enough to fulfill (the demand),” Bulog President Director Budi Waseso told reporters on Friday.

Indonesia’s National Food Agency (Bapanas) released on Thursday that the staple foods in the country, such as rice, soybeans, and beef had been experiencing a price hike. The rice price has increased in the range of 0.62 percent to 0.78 percent per kilogram.

The agency has also warned that without a top-up supply, the country’s reserve of rice could drop and create a food crisis.

Indonesia’s inflation has exceeded its central bank’s target for the last six months due to increasing prices in food and commodities, though the country still sees a trend of economic recovery.

Tags: Indonesia, rice, Vietnam, Pakistan, Thailand, stocks, Myanmar, импорт, price