"No, we have not heard of (that finding) yet. Please inform us, we will investigate it," the ministry's spokesperson Febri Hendri Antoni Arif said here on Tuesday.
Arif said that his administration is seeking more detailed information, such as the degree of contamination and how it occurred.
"After being investigated, it will be seen how it looks like, where it happened, in what sort of container, and who (caused) the radioactive item to be in there," he said.
His administration will also coordinate with stakeholders, such as the Nuclear Monitoring Agency (Bapeten) to get more information.
The information came to attention after the US Food and Drug Administration found alleged contamination of cesium-137, a radioactive material, in Indonesian shrimps and cloves.
The Coordinating Minister for Food, Zulkifli Hasan, said on Tuesday that the government conducts further investigation regarding this allegation.
The ministry still cannot determine where the contamination came from, the coordinating ministry's expert staff for digital transformation and institutional relations, Bara Hasibuan, stated.
Hasibuan has noted that an initial investigation shows PT Peter Metal Technology (PMT) in Cikande as the source of contamination. The company produces iron from scraps.
The contamination transferred airborne from the company to PT Bahari Makmur Sejati (BMS) shrimp factory, which is two km away from PMT.
The shrimps that have been exported to America have been returned, and some are still on their way. Of the 26 containers which have arrived in Indonesia, 18 are stored in Tanjung Priok Port to be studied by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN).
The government consistently updates the stakeholders, including global partners like the USA and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), with the latest news and findings regarding the cesium-137 contamination case.
The head of the National Food and Drug Authority (BPOM) Taruna Ikrar urged information dissemination and mitigation measures to tackle the radioactive contamination issue, given food safety is a global concern, and this case can impact national export.
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Translator: Arnidhya Nur Zhafira, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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