In a statement issued on Friday, BPOM head Taruna Ikrar highlighted the importance of increasing food supervision ahead of and during Ramadan and Eid , given the increased demand for food during this period.
"According to data from Statistics Indonesia and the Ministry of Trade, there was a 20–30 percent rise in food demand during Ramadan last year," he said.
He added that the supervision initiative was launched on February 24, 2025, and will be carried out in stages until the fourth week of March 2025.
Ikrar said that special monitoring will be conducted to detect products that are illegal, expired, or damaged.
He said this step will be carried out by 76 BPOM technical implementation units across the country in collaboration with other agencies. It will cover the upstream and downstream sectors of food distribution chains.
The monitoring will focus on the upstream segment of food product distribution chains, especially facilities that have a track record of violations involving illegal, expired, and damaged food.
In addition to direct supervision, BPOM is also conducting cyber patrols and coordinating with the Indonesian E-commerce Association (idEA) to remove content promoting the sale of illegal products.
"The monitoring also targets iftar (fast-breaking) foods containing prohibited substances, such as formalin, borax, metanil yellow, and Rhodamine B," Ikrar said.
To raise entrepreneurs' awareness and reduce the circulation of illegal foods, BPOM is actively providing business players with assistance to meet the processed food registration requirements.
He also reminded consumers to check packaging information, including the expiration date, before purchasing or consuming food.
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Translator: Mecca Yumna, Raka Adji
Editor: Anton Santoso
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