"We are monitoring distribution to the markets," head of the office Suharini Eliawati remarked here on Friday.
Eliawati noted that the Jakarta Provincial Government has the Food Security Task Force comprising related agencies, including the police, that had been tasked with ensuring smooth supply and distribution of food.
According to the office head, Jakarta's food supply areas, such as West Java and Central Java, are currently entering the harvest period.
Hence, she said, the supply of some food commodities, such as rice, chili, and shallots, is normal, as they are backed by the harvesting period ahead of Ramadan.
"The supply condition is normal in March 2023 because it is currently the harvest period," Eliawati explained.
She noted that the peak of the rainy season during the January-February 2023 period had disrupted several horticultural commodities, such as chili and shallots.
However, as the rainy season is coming to an end and several supplying regions are entering the harvest season, food supply is projected to be smooth, especially during the high demand ahead of Ramadan.
"Currently, the food supply in Jakarta is relatively safe. There had been a slight decrease in horticultural food supplies due to the high rainfall in supplying areas," Eliawati remarked.
Hence, with smooth supply and distribution, food prices can be controlled ahead of Ramadan despite her predicted slight increase in the prices of eggs that are in high demand.
"As it is happening, the current price increase is not significant, but the increase reached 0.96 percent to 10 percent last year," she pointed out.
Meanwhile, the provincial government, in collaboration with the Agriculture Ministry, has supplied 17 tons of chili and 175 tons of shallots to the Kramatjati Market in an effort to balance supplies.
The chili was imported from Magelang and Temanggung in Central Java, while shallots were sourced from Garut and Sumedang, West Java.
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Translator: Dewa W, Kenzu
Editor: Sri Haryati
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
