BPOM Speaks Up About Indonesian Shrimp Found Containing Radioactive

Head of the Indonesian Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) Taruna Ikrar (Photo: Doc. BPOM)

JAKARTA - Head of the Indonesian Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) Taruna Ikrar talked about the possibility that shrimp that has been contaminated with radioactive rice can still be eaten.

Previously, the United States Food Drug Administration (FDA) found radioactive contamination of Cesium-137 in frozen shrimp from Indonesia.

The government then traced the case and found that the contamination was thought to have come from the Cikande industrial area, Serang. Regarding food safety, Taruna said that his party was still conducting examinations with the task force team that had been formed to find out whether the shrimp exposed to radioactive can still be eaten or not.

"Yes, of course we will evaluate it. Of course, our commitment certainly does not want the contaminated goods to enter the human body," said Taruna when met by media crews in South Jakarta on Tuesday, October 14, 2025.

"The POM is certainly committed to maintaining security, safety, and more importantly the quality must be good," he continued.

As a result of these findings, the FDA applies the requirements for import certification from Indonesia in two categories, namely the red list and yellow list.

For products from red list companies, the delivery process must go through the stages of petition submission, verification, and certification by independent institutions.

"Of course we will evaluate it. Of course, our commitment certainly does not want the contaminated goods to enter the human body," he said.

"BPOM ensures that through our instructions we are really serious. Professionally, through the involvement of the task force, we are really serious that things are polluted, we will not use them," he continued.