Rosner, L. PeterMcCulloch, Neil2012-03-302012-03-302008Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies00074918https://hdl.handle.net/10986/4901Debate about Indonesian rice policy has focused on estimates of production and consumption levels, and the level of imports they imply. However, Indonesian rice production and consumption data are controversial. Rice consumption as estimated from household survey data is much lower than officially reported rice production. This suggests that Indonesia is a net rice exporter, but in fact it has generally been a net importer. Some researchers argue that rice consumption data are underestimated; others contend that production is over-estimated because of inaccuracies in 'eye estimates' of harvested area. This paper reviews how rice production and consumption are measured, notes major weaknesses, and surveys attempts to reconcile consumption and production data and examine their consistency with rice import data. It concludes that rice prices are the only accurate indicator of the balance between supply and demand, and hence of the appropriate level of imports.ENCountry and Industry Studies of Trade F140Economic Development: AgricultureNatural ResourcesEnergyEnvironmentOther Primary Products O130International Linkages to DevelopmentRole of International Organizations O190Agriculture: Aggregate Supply and Demand AnalysisPrices Q110Agriculture in International Trade Q170Agricultural PolicyFood Policy Q180Journal ArticleWorld Bank