Apart from clothing, during religious holidays (Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, and Christmas), the demand for meat also increases dramatically. The celebrations of Eid al-Adha and Eid al-Fitr, in particular, are associated with the consumption of satay or stew.

These routines repeat every year. With the continuous increase in population, the demand for meat keeps growing. However, the total meat consumption rate in Indonesia is still below the global average.

According to the latest Worldometers report, the population of Indonesia, as of 31 January 2023, is around 274 million. Quoting from The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre (RISSC) report titled The Muslim 500 edition of 2023, the Muslim population in Indonesia reached 237.55 million.

However, meat consumption in Indonesia still falls far behind compared to Asian countries like Japan or Korea. Even the meat consumption in Indonesia is said to be equal to Ethiopia.

Citing data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the average global meat consumption is about 6.3 kilograms per capita. Statistics Indonesia (BPS) reports that beef and buffalo meat consumption per capita in Indonesia in 2022 is estimated to be around 2.5 kilograms or about 695,390 tons, with a population of around 274 million.

Previously, in 2021, the OECD also reported that domestic meat consumption was below the global average. Based on animal types, Indonesia's chicken meat consumption was only about 8.1 kilograms per capita in 2021, while the global average consumption was 14.9 kg per capita.

As for beef, it's a similar situation. Beef consumption in Indonesia is about 2.2 kg per capita, compared to the global average of 6.4 kg per capita. Lamb consumption in Indonesia is only 0.4 kg per capita, below the global average of 1.3 kg per capita.

Pork consumption in Indonesia is recorded at 1 kg per capita, significantly below the global average of 10.8 kg per capita. This is because the majority of Indonesia's population is Muslim, and pork consumption is prohibited. Most pork consumers in Indonesia are in regions where the population is predominantly non-Muslim.

In certain Indonesian regions, meat consumption is indeed low. The DKI Jakarta province has the highest consumption rate, at 6.10 kg per capita per year. The West Nusa Tenggara province ranks second after DKI Jakarta, with a consumption rate of 4.06 kg per capita per year.

In 2022, beef and buffalo meat consumption in West Java and East Java was the same, at 3.30 kg per capita per year. The province with the lowest meat consumption rate was North Sumatra Province, with 0.67 kilograms per capita. Other provinces with low meat consumption rates are Maluku (0.75 kilograms per capita), West Sulawesi (0.83 kilograms), and Papua (0.88 kilograms).

Causes of Low Consumption

The low level of meat consumption in Indonesia is due to two factors, namely price and supply. Economic laws come into play when demand and supply are imbalanced.

Java Island, which has the densest population in Indonesia, has a demand for beef and buffalo meat of 500.43 thousand tons. Meanwhile, beef and buffalo meat production is only 258.17 thousand tons, resulting in a deficit of 242.26 thousand tons.

Sulawesi, Bali, and Nusa Tenggara Islands are beef and buffalo meat production centers in Indonesia. The production of beef and buffalo meat in Sulawesi, Bali, and Nusa Tenggara experiences surpluses of 3.57 thousand tons and 18.36 thousand tons.

This condition was emphasized by the President Director of PT Berdikari Harry Warganegara, during his participation as a speaker in the morning discussion "Ngobrol Pagi Seputar BUMN (Ngopi BUMN)" titled "The Role of State-Owned Enterprises Before Eid al-Adha and the Implementation of Hajj in Indonesia," held at the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) in Jakarta on Thursday, 22 June 2023. Harry stated that Indonesia's beef consumption is only 2.66 kilograms per capita per year, below the global average of 6.4 kg per capita per year.

"Indonesia's beef consumption in 2021 was around 717,750 tons per year. However, domestic beef production was only 437,783 tons per year. To meet this demand, Indonesia imported frozen meat totaling 279.97 thousand tons per year," he explained.

The imbalance between supply and demand leads to high beef prices in Indonesia. Therefore, most Indonesian people consume beef during specific times such as Eid al-Fitr or Eid al-Adha.

According to Harry, the low meat consumption in Indonesia is due to the high beef prices in the country. He cited South Korea and Japan as examples of countries with higher meat consumption rates compared to Indonesia due to their higher purchasing power.

The high price of beef in Indonesia is a result of the insufficient supply of cattle for domestic needs, stemming from a continuous decline in the number of cattle farmers in Indonesia. This is due to the low level of welfare for farmers, which leads to a lack of interest in becoming a cattle farmer.

According to the Livestock and Animal Health Statistics data in 2022, the number of cattle farming households was 5,078,979 in 2013. However, by 2018, this number had decreased to 4,642,186.

For context, cattle farmers in Indonesia are mostly smallholders who, on average, have between three to four cattle. However, ideally, each farming household should have at least 20 cattle or more to make it more profitable.

Road to Meat Self-Sufficiency

For this reason, domestic cattle production must be increased. On a separate occasion, Harry stated that achieving self-sufficiency in beef should be made a National Strategic Program (PSN).

This was conveyed by Harry during his participation as a speaker in a discussion with the theme "Multiplier Effect and Exit Strategy for National Beef Cattle Breeding towards Meat Self-Sufficiency through the Addition of Breeding Cattle Volume," organized by NFA in Bekasi, West Java, on Tuesday, 6 June 2023.

In the discussion, Harry stated that achieving self-sufficiency in beef as a PSN would involve efforts to increase the population of breeding cattle, banning the slaughter of productive female cattle along with solutions for farmers, and developing feed schemes capable of meeting the needs of the cattle population while reducing methane emissions.

In line with Harry, Andriko Noto Susanto, the Deputy for Consumption Diversity and Food Security of the National Food Agency (NFA) mentioned that they are currently preparing written documents for proposing self-sufficiency in the beef cattle program as a PSN. Andriko also stated that they would review regulations related to national meat self-sufficiency.

Among them is Article 36C of Law No. 41 of 2014 on Amendments to Law No. 18/2009 on Livestock and Animal Health, which was amended through Article 34 of Law No. 6/2023 on the Enactment of Government Regulation in Lieu of Law No. 2/2022 on Job Creation into Law, which is perceived to hinder the import of breeding cattle. On the other hand, the government also have been undergoing various efforts towards achieving beef self-sufficiency by 2026.

During the administration of President Joko Widodo, two ministers of agriculture, Amran Sulaiman (2014-2019) and Syahrul Yasin Limpo (2019-present), have issued policies to increase births, improve feed quality, and control diseases. Amran issued Ministerial Regulation No. 48 of 2016 on Special Efforts to Accelerate the Increase of Pregnant Cows and Buffalo Population (Upsus Siwab).

Subsequently, Syahrul issued Ministerial Regulation No. 17 of 2020 on the Increased in Production of Cattle and Buffalo as the Country's Main Commodities (Sikomandan). The ongoing program is expected to contribute to the goal of achieving beef self-sufficiency by 2026.

Writer: Dwitri Waluyo
Editor: Ratna Nuraini/Elvira Inda Sari/Wilda Stiana
Translator: Irvina Falah