Maintain People's Purchasing Power, Food Agency Holds Cheap Markets In 300 Regencies-Cities

Head of the National Food Agency Arief Prasetyo Adi. (Photo: Mery Handayani/VOI)

JAKARTA - The National Food Agency officially started the Cheap Food Movement (GPM) at a simultaneous low-cost market at 341 location points spread across 300 districts/cities.

This is an effort to maintain people's purchasing power through the provision of food supplies at affordable prices ahead of the Religious and National Holidays (HBKN) Eid al-Adha.

"Launching the National Cheap Food Movement today is a real action for all of us in maintaining food inflation, as well as increasing the economic growth of food business players for farmers and breeders," said Head of the National Food Agency (NFA) Arief Prasetyo Adi as quoted by Antara, Monday, June 26.

The implementation of the simultaneous GPM, he continued, is even the largest in the world and the number of points will continue to grow considering that a number of regencies/cities have implemented it for more than 1 day.

"The number of GPM points continued to increase last night, even up to 343 but those registered in the 341 Indonesian World Record Museum," he said.

Arief said that national inflation in May 2023 was 4 percent (yoy) and continued to show a decline from the previous period, including controlled HPKN such as Eid Al-Fitr Nataru.

However, vigilance against food availability must still be maintained considering the potential climate change of El Nino, global geopolitical impacts, supply instability, and high global food prices.

One of the efforts that can be done is to maintain inflation in the food sector, especially Volatile food. For this reason, the National Food Agency is present with the relevant Ministry of institutions and all food stakeholders to unravel food challenges one by one," he said.

The implementation of this cheap market will provide various basic foodstuffs at affordable prices or below market prices, such as rice, eggs, chilies, shallots, garlic, chicken meat, beef, sugar, cooking oil, as well as various vegetables and fruits.

On the same occasion, the Expert Staff of the Minister of Finance for State Expenditures, Made Arya Wijaya, said that cheap market activities were in line with government policies to meet the availability and affordability of food.

"We really appreciate the initiative carried out by the national food agency, hopefully with the cheap hand movements carried out at this simultaneous time," he said.

In line with Arief, Deputy II for Food and Business Coordination of the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, Musdhalifah Machmud, said that food commodities take part in inflation.

In May, shallots, chicken meat, rice each contributed 0.03 percent of inflation, while fresh fish, eggs, broiler and garlic each gave 0.02 percent inflation.

Therefore, in order to fulfill food needs for the people, he said, the government must encourage the people to have access to food availability.

"Congratulations to the National Food Agency and all stakeholders, we really admire that the National Food Agency at the age of only one and a half years can hold a very large event and it means very much the formation of a rank for our people throughout Indonesia," he said.