There Are Findings Of Mutu Down Rice, Bulog Sends 270 Tons To Ternate

President Director of Perum Bulog Ahmad Rizal Ramdhani. (Photo: Bulog)

JAKARTA Perum Bulog sent 270 tons of rice to Ternate, North Maluku, as a concrete step on the findings of quality-degrading rice in the region.

Previously, this issue caught the attention of Commission IV of the DPR RI.

President Director of Perum Bulog Ahmad Rizal Ramdhani also went directly to Ternate to ensure that the handling in the field went according to standards and ensured that rice stocks for the community were maintained in good condition.

"Bulog immediately took concrete steps by sending 270 tons of rice to Ternate to strengthen food reserves in the North Maluku region," he said in an official statement, Wednesday, October 8.

In addition, continued Rizal, Bulog also carried out reprocesses or reprocesses of rice that experienced a decline in quality but still deserved consumption.

"The quality of the rice is not inappropriate. We have a reprocess mechanism so that the quality returns according to standards. Meanwhile, damaged and irreparable rice will be tested in the laboratory to ensure follow-up steps in accordance with the provisions," said Rizal.

Rizal said that the damaged rice will go through the laboratory examination stage before the handling steps are decided.

If laboratory test results show that the content is still below the food safety limit, rice can be sold to the feed industry.

However, he continued, if the test results show levels above the food safety limit, the rice can be sold to non-food or non-packery industries, even destroyed if it does not meet security standards.

"This step shows Bulog's commitment to food security as well as the implementation of accountable and transparent governance," he said.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the North Maluku Provincial DPRD, Iqbal Ruray, appreciated the quick steps taken by Bulog and submitted a suggestion that the status of the Bulog Branch Office in North Maluku could be upgraded to a separate Regional Office from the Ambon area.

According to Iqbal, this increase in institutional status is important to strengthen Bulog's function in facing geographical challenges and food distribution in islands that have different logistics characteristics.

Sejalan dengan hal tersebut, pemerintah bersama Bulog juga tengah mempersiapkan pembangunan enam gudang logistik baru di Maluku Utara untuk memperkuat kapasitas penyimpanan dan memperlancar distribusi pangan di wilayah tersebut.

Langkah ini menjadi bagian dari strategi nasional dalam memperkuat ketahanan pangan serta meningkatkan efisiensi rantai pasok di wilayah-wilayah terpencil dan kepulauan.

In line with this, the government and Bulog are also preparing to build six new logistics warehouses in North Maluku to strengthen storage capacity and facilitate food distribution in the region.

This step is part of a national strategy in strengthening food security and increasing the efficiency of supply chains in remote and archipelago areas.