Indonesia’s 2014 rice output seen at 73 m tons

Wednesday, 30 April 2014 00:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

JAKARTA (Reuters): Indonesia is forecast to produce 73 million tons of unmilled rice in 2014, government ministers said on Tuesday, slightly lower than a previous estimate at 76 million tons due to the scarcity of land for expansion.

Indonesia’s state food procurement body Bulog has built up rice stocks of 1.7 million tons, Indonesia’s chief economic minister Hatta Rajasa told reporters, adding that the agency is likely to buy from domestic suppliers this year. Bulog usually maintains rice stocks at between 1.5 million to 2 million tons to guard against food inflation. Indonesia’s unmilled rice production was estimated at 71.29 million tons in 2013.