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Abstract
Consumption of livestock products in Southeast Asia could continue to increase rapidly,
as has been the case in Northeast Asia. The extent to which domestic producers may
respond to these demand developments will be influenced by government interventions in
both livestock product and feeds markets. The paper analyses the net contribution of
livestock product and feed price distortions on the effective rate of protection, and whether
intervention in the commodity market is augmented or offset by intervention in the feeds
market. While policy-induced distortions were found to exist in the livestock sectors of
Thailand and Malaysia, especially in beef and dairy production, the contribution of feeds
policies to these distortions was minimal. In contrast implicit taxes on feeds were high in
Indonesia and the Philippines. In the latter, support on product prices was sufficient to
more than offset the tax on feeds so that effective protection remained positive. But in
Indonesia both livestock and feeds policies worked to provide disincentives to livestock
production. It is concluded that livestock and feeds policies should be formulated with
regard to objectives and priorities within both sectors. This could require that greater
emphasis be placed on feeds sector assistance policies that do not affect the price of feeds.