Cacao Farmers Complain About Price Fall

Palu, C Sulawesi, July 1 (Antara) - Farmers in Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi, complained about the price fall of cacao beans while price of almost all essential goods rising following the government`s recent decision to raise the price of oil fuels. Minggu (45), a local farmer, said here on Monday the price of cacao bean fell from Rp20,000 last week to only Rp18,600 per kilogram at present. The price fall came when the transport fare surged following the government`s policy raising the price of premium gasoline to Rp6,500 from Rp4,500 per liter on June 19, 2013. Traders said they set their buying prices based on their selling prices to exporters. Most farmers in Central Sulawesi, one of the largest cacao producing provinces of the country , make their living from growing cacao . Indonesia is the world`s third largest producer of cacao beans after the Ivory Coastt and Ghana.