Inspection To Lotte Mart, Bulog Boss Checks The Availability Of SPHP Rice

ID FOOD checks the availability of SPHP rice at Lotte Mart (Photo: Mery Handayani/VOI)

JAKARTA - The Public Company of the Logistics Affairs Agency (Perum Bulog) together with the National Food Agency and ID FOOD conducted an inspection of one of the retail markets to check the availability of rice for the Stabilization of Supply and Food Prices (SPHP).

Bulog Director Budi Waseso (Buwas) explained that Bulog was tasked with continuing to pour SPHP rice into traditional and non-traditional markets massively.

"We were given a mission by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) to pour SPHP rice throughout Indonesia. The target is now modern retail. Bulog must be able to continue to provide cheap rice with this SPHP to the public," said Buwas at Lotte Mart, Pasar Rebo, East Jakarta, Friday, September 8.

Buwas, Budi Waseso's nickname, emphasized that Bulog together with the National Food Agency will continue to coordinate with modern retailers to distribute as many SPHP rice as possible.

"If the assignment is from Pak Arif (Head of the National Food Agency) we coordinate with Pak Roy (Chairman of Umun Aprindo) and other retail friends to keep us able to distribute this as much as possible," he said.

As a result, continued Buwas, the government's rice stock in Bulog's warehouse continues to decrease. It is known, the government's rice stock in Bulog's warehouse last month was still as much as 1.6 million tons.

Bulog already has 1.6 million tons, but now it's starting to decrease. Because for this to be distributed continuously, but God willing, we will massively how to keep the stock condition stable, the most important thing is," he said.

Similarly, Head of the National Food Agency Arief Prasetyo Adi explained that the massive disbursement of SPHP rice to markets, including modern retailers, was an order from President Jokowi.

"This SPHP stabilizes the supply of food prices, especially rice, ordered by the President to be massively disbursed," said Arief.

However, said Arief, the purchase of rice in modern retail remains limited. Where every customer is allowed to buy a maximum of 3 pax or 15 kilograms of SPHP rice.

"A maximum of 3 pax per customer," said Arief.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Indonesian Retail Entrepreneurs Association (Aprindo), Roy Nicholas Mandey, appreciated Bulog and the National Food Agency for distributing SPHP rice to several modern retailers.

"With the government providing rice in modern retail, it is a real step. We thank you and hope that the availability of SPHP rice is sustainable," said Roy.