Jakarta (AsiaNews) - Indonesians might lose their main dishes, tofu and tempeh, which they eat at breakfast, lunch and dinner, because of soaring cost of soybeans. Until now, both ruled the table not only because they taste good but also because they were cheap. For poor families, they are good replacements for meat or fish, ensuring a balanced diet for the lower classes of society.
Since soybean costs doubled, from IDR 4,000 to 8,000, food companies have had to raise their prices. Likewise, small-scale mom-and-pop producers who make tofu and tempeh at home have come under pressure.
This could turn ugly. In Java, millions of home-based producers but also food companies could stop production. "This is the highest prices in years," a small producer in Bekasi said.
In fact, anger is already starting to rise. A general strike is a real possibility unless President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono does not put a cap on prices.
However, this is nothing new. Higher soybean costs have been a problem in the past, especially during Ramadan, when consumers tend to stock up for Idul Fitri, the feast that marks the end of the month-long fast.
Presidential spokesperson Julian Aldrin Pasha said that the president is following the issue; however, the spike in cost, he noted, is largely due to a drought in the United States, Indonesia's main supplier of soybeans (and corn).