Jakarta. The government will release 1.3 million tons from its government rice reserves to stabilize prices following the end of the main harvest season, Chief Food Affairs Minister Zulkifli Hasan said on Friday.
As the country enters the second planting season during the dry season, rice production is no longer matching market demand, Zulkifli said.
“(State Logistics Agency) Bulog has been instructed to accelerate market operations. We already have 1.3 million tons ready to flood the market, but with strict supervision,” Zulkifli told reporters after a coordination meeting at his office in Jakarta.
According to Zulkifli, the end of the harvest season has pushed rice prices higher compared to earlier months, reflecting data from the Home Affairs Ministry that placed rice as the third-largest contributor to food inflation.
“During the second planting season, rice demand increases while production drops, leading to higher prices,” Zulkifli said.
The government will also tighten monitoring to ensure rice distributed under the government’s rice stabilization program, known as SPHP, is not mixed with higher-quality rice, amid efforts to crack down on fraudulent rice practices in the market.
“SPHP rice must be distributed in its intended form without mixing,” Zulkifli stressed.
Earlier this week, National Food Agency (Bapanas) head Arief Prasetyo Adi called on state logistics agency Bulog to ensure accurate targeting in the distribution of SPHP rice, which is aimed at low-income households.
“The government wants the distribution of SPHP rice to be precise. We have asked Bulog to ensure that the 5-kilogram rice packages reach the intended recipients,” Arief said on Monday.
Arief said that SPHP rice, which is subsidized by the government, should not be opened or mixed with other types of rice in the market to protect the integrity of the program.
To ensure the subsidy reaches those who need it most, distribution is under close monitoring by several agencies, including the National Police’s food task force and the Trade Ministry’s Directorate General of Consumer Protection and Trade Compliance.
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