BPOM Seizes Herbal Medicine And Processed Food Containing Medicinal Chemicals In E-Commerce

Head of BPOM Penny K Lukito (ANTARA/Andi Firdaus).

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) confiscated various illegal herbal and processed food products containing medicinal chemicals such as Paracetamol and Sildenafil through cyber patrols on a number of electronic commerce (e-commerce) platforms.

"This product is herbal medicine and coffee products which are prohibited because they contain medicinal chemicals to increase stamina in a short time but pose a huge risk to health aspects," said Head of BPOM RI, Penny K Lukito, quoted by Antara, Friday, March 4.

Evidence seized in the form of Paracetamol and Sildenafil raw materials of more than 30 kilograms, bulk materials of more than 5 kilograms in the form of capsules or other packaging, simple production equipment that does not meet good manufacturing methods.

While the confiscated finished products consisted of 15 types with a total of 5,800 items, traditional medicines consisted of 36 types totaling 18,200 items. "There are types of coffee with various brands and illegal claims that can deceive consumers," he said.

According to Penny, all illegal products worth a total of more than Rp. 1.5 billion were confiscated from production houses in Bandung and Bogor, West Java in the past month. "There are already two suspects," he said.

The long-term effect of using medicinal chemical raw materials beyond the dose is at risk of triggering heart problems, liver disorders, affecting reproductive organs, and causing cancer and death.

Plt. Deputy IV for Enforcement at BPOM RI Muhamad Kashuri said that the disclosure of the case began with cyber patrol activities through monitoring the sales links for coffee-type food products for male stamina, including the Tokopedia and Shopee platforms.

The mode used by the suspect is in the form of instant efficacy claims to the inclusion of an illegal BPOM permit on product packaging to convince consumers.

"Then we will investigate and relate it to the findings of previous similar cases in Malang. The story continues and we trace them to illegal facilities that were found to produce not only coffee but other processed foods," he said.

This disclosure adds to the list of findings of similar cases revealed by BPOM RI in the last two years, totaling 88 cases in court. A total of 24 of them have received verdicts.

The perpetrators were charged with multiple articles including Articles 196 and 197 of Law Number 36 of 2009 concerning Health with a threat of 15 years in prison and a fine of Rp. 1.5 billion as well as Articles 136 and 140 of Law Number 18 of 2012 concerning Food with a threat of 5 years and a fine. IDR 10 billion.