Ministry of Religion Wants Hajj Rice to be Sent to Saudi Arabia Before Ramadan

Minister of Hajj and Umrah Mochamad Irfan Yusuf during the national haj manasik at the Pondok Gede Hajj Dormitory, Jakarta, Wednesday (11/2/2026). ANTARA/HO-Kemenhaj

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah (Kemenhaj) is trying to send Nusantara Haji Rice which will meet the needs of Indonesian prospective pilgrims to be able to be sent to Saudi Arabia at the beginning of Ramadan.

"Beras Nusantara is being tried in the first week of Ramadan, we have started to send it in the hope that before the Hajj season it will arrive," said Minister of Hajj and Umrah (Menhaj) Mochamad Irfan Yusuf at the Pondok Gede Hajj Dormitory, Jakarta, Wednesday, February 11, reported by ANTARA.

He explained that the total rice needs for 205,420 people (regular worshipers and officers) reached 2,280 tons. This number is calculated based on the frequency of worshipers' meals which reached 78 times in Mecca, 27 times in Medina, and six times in the Armuzna area.

Until now, he said, the kitchen of service providers in Saudi Arabia generally uses rice from other countries with a market price of around 150 SAR per 40 kg or equivalent to Rp16,824 per kg.

Through this program, he said, the government targets the price of Nusantara Haji Rice to reach Rp. 16,000 per kg when it arrives at the service provider's kitchen. This step is also an effort to streamline and standardize the menu for pilgrims.

In the composition of the menu provided, he said, the pilgrims will get a portion of rice weighing 170 grams each meal, accompanied by 80 grams of lauk, 75 grams of vegetables, as well as mineral water and other supplements.

The Secretary General of the National Food Agency (Bapanas) Sarwo Edhy ensured that the export process of rice for Hajj needs to Saudi Arabia could run smoothly according to plan to support services to Indonesian pilgrims.

"Regarding the export of Hajj rice later, after there is a memorandum from the meeting today, the National Food Agency will prepare a letter of assignment to Bulog to carry out the export of Hajj rice," said Sarwo.

Meanwhile, Coordinating Minister for Food and Agriculture Zulkifli Hasan said exports from the abundant CBP stocks of Perum Bulog must also be able to meet the consumption of Indonesian people who are going on hajj. The preference for rice consumption is also more suitable for rice from the country itself.

"Today we agree that the rice is from us. So tomorrow the pilgrims will be more than 200 thousand people, the rice must be from us," said Coordinating Minister Zulkifli Hasan.

"We support the process. The congregation prefers our rice, right? So we all fully support and decide that the rice is from us, exported to Saudi Arabia," he said.