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JAKARTA - The National  Food Agency (Bapanas) ensures that the Highest Retail Price (HET) for  rice in the Food Supply and Price Stabilization (SPHP) program will not change.

The government also maintains the maximum purchase limit of 25 kilograms (kg) per consumer to prevent unfair distribution practices in the field.

The Head of the National Food Agency (Bapanas) who is also the Minister of Agriculture, Andi Amran Sulaiman, emphasized that the price of SPHP rice is still the same as before.

He said this certainty was important because SPHP rice was a price-balancing intervention in the market.

"There is a name for SPHP. It is rice for balancing if someone wants to raise the price. Well, SPHP, we don't raise it. The price remains as it is now. (Quality) this is premium," Amran said in an official statement, Friday, April 24.

Amran added that the quality of SPHP rice is getting better with the right timely fertilizer support, the right volume, and adequate water availability.

Based on the Bapanas record, the realization of the distribution of SPHP rice in 2026 shows a positive trend since it was rolled out in March.

Throughout March, the realization reached 70,010 tons, while the early period from April to April 23 had reached 69,850 tons or 99.77 percent of the previous month's achievement.

In order to maintain the smooth distribution, Bapanas together with Perum Bulog also discussed solutions to the limitations of plastic packaging.

One of them is through the utilization of packaging stocks in 2023-2025 of around 12.3 million sheets, provided that the information on the packaging remains in accordance with the product content and is strictly supervised.

Regarding the restriction on the maximum purchase of 25 kg per consumer, Amran emphasized that this step aims to maintain the effectiveness of government subsidies so that they are targeted and not abused, such as the practice of buying in large quantities to be resold.

"This is limited because this is a government subsidy so that it can be balanced. So this will definitely lower the price. If it is not limited (can) be bought 1 truck, (then) sold again," he said.

The maximum purchase provision has been regulated in the Decree of the Head of Bapanas Number 34 of 2026.

In the rules, the public can buy a maximum of 5 5kg packages with a total of 25kg, or an alternative of two 2kg packages.

SPHP rice that has been purchased is also prohibited from being resold.

The target for the distribution of SPHP this year is 828,000 tons with the support of a subsidy budget of Rp. 4.97 trillion.

Bulog is directed to prioritize distribution to non-center areas of rice production as well as areas that are not experiencing mass harvests.

Furthermore, Amran ensured that the Government  Rice Reserve (CBP) stock managed by Bulog was in a very safe condition and even recorded a record high.

This condition also has an impact on the stability of rice inflation which is increasingly under control.

Grains & Pasta

"Rice was a contributor to inflation. This is the last 2 years, not rice as the main contributor to inflation. So we use the data," he said.

Data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) shows a declining trend in rice inflation.

If in 2023 and 2024 monthly inflation had touched 5.61 percent and 5.28 percent, then in 2025 the highest was only 1.35 percent.

Meanwhile, in 2026, the highest inflation was recorded in March at 0.65 percent, showing an increasingly stable condition.

Source : voi