The Moslems’ holy Ramadan is special because the need for livestock, including beef and poultry, will increase. Unfortunately, the stock of beef in Sorong for the current Ramadan is insufficient due to several crucial problems.
Sorong usually faces no problems with its stocks because the beef imports from Maluku and its products are sufficient. However, this year the problem arises because cattle farmers in Maluku are facing serious foot and mouth (FMD) disease.
Thus, the Sorong government stops the imports in order to avoid more problems due to the disease. Nevertheless, the government is trying its best to meet Beef meat in Sorong by bringing beef stock from East Nusa Tenggara (NTT).
Let’s check out the updates in the following:
Sorong Stops the Beef Import from Maluku
In its normal condition, Sorong faces no problems with its beef livestock needs due to the stock import from Maluku. Upon arriving at Sorong, the local Agriculture Quarantine Service will supervise and disinfect the imported cattle to ensure they are all healthy and consumable.
The cattle should be quarantined for seven days before their release to ensure they are healthy and free from FMD. During the quarantine, the officer will take samples from the livestock so they can check them well.
This 2023 Ramadan, problems arise due to the FMD plague in Maluku’s livestock. Thus, the government has to think about the best possible way in order to meet the beef needs in its region. The solution would be bringing in livestock from NTT so there will be no shortage of beef in the Sorong region.
The Local Beef Supplier
In normal conditions, the local beef meat supplier in Sorong plays a great role because they help meet the demand for beef in Sorong as well. Unfortunately, the current condition forces them to be unable to help much due to the limited stocks within the region.
Mustafa, a beef seller in Remu Market, Sorong City, said that they only sell local beef due to insufficient stocks. He later added that the local beef quality is not good because it has too many fats. Thus, if he has to sell the product, the beef will lose weight because he has to cut off all the fats.
That is what Mustafa explained to George Yarangga, a mayor’s staff, and his team when inspecting the local market Sorong. Another beef seller named Rahmat told Yarangga that the beef price today will skyrocket every Eid Mubarak due to its special day.
This is the day when people will celebrate after a month of fasting, so that they will cook diverse cuisines made of beef. He explained that he had to pay Rp for 80 kg of beef, 14 million rupiahs.
Beef Meat in the Local Market
Even though there is an insufficient beef problem, beef price in Sorong is relatively stable because there are no significant price increases in the local market. In Pasar Remu Sorong City, the current beef price is Rp150.000 per kg, while the retail price can reach up to Rp170.000 per kg.
However, should there be any increasing demand, the price could skyrocket due to the region’s limited beef livestock.
Conclusion
The Sorong government is concerned about the insufficient beef needs within its region, so they bring livestock from NTT to solve the problem. They cannot import livestock from Maluku as usual due to the province’s foot and mouth disease plague. Thus, the Sorong government decided to stop the import and prefer to rely on their local products and import ones from NTT.
So far, everything is under control because the beef price in the market is relatively stable. Thus, the Sorong government has done its best to provide beef in Sorong so their people can easily celebrate Ramadan and Eid Mubarak.
