Barantin deploys 3,930 personnel to monitor food supplies during Ramadan

During the Ramadan period, Barantin is intensifying its monitoring of food commodity traffic to ensure the safety and quality of food consumed by the public.

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian Agency for Agricultural Quarantine (Barantin) is deploying 3,930 personnel to enhance the monitoring of agricultural and fishery commodity traffic during Ramadan until Eid al-Fitr, from February 19 to March 22, 2026.

This measure is taken to anticipate the increased frequency and volume of food commodity traffic leading up to the religious holidays while ensuring the safety and quality of food circulating among the public.

“During Ramadan, Barantin is intensifying its monitoring of food commodity traffic to ensure the safety and quality of food consumed by the public while observing Ramadan,” said the Head of the Bureau of Legal Affairs and Public Relations of Barantin, Hudiansyah Is Nursal, in a statement in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Barantin stated that the enhanced monitoring is carried out in accordance with the mandate of Law Number 21 of 2019 concerning Animal, Fish, and Plant Quarantine.

Through this mandate, Barantin is tasked with preventing the entry, exit, and spread of quarantine animal pests, quarantine fish diseases, and quarantine plant pests.

In addition, Barantin also carries out routine monitoring of food safety and quality, which is intensified during Ramadan until the eve of Eid al-Fitr.

“The trend of agricultural and fishery commodity traffic during Ramadan until Eid al-Fitr, based on data from the Data and Information System Center, is relatively higher compared to the previous month, such as rice, meat, fish, eggs, chilies, onions, and other staple foods,” he said.

Based on certifications recorded in Best Trust, the total volume of staple foods during last year’s Ramadan increased by 69 percent or reached 56.04 thousand tons compared to 33.21 thousand tons in the previous month.

The most significant increase occurred in various types of fish, such as tuna and skipjack, which increased by 137 percent, followed by rice by 92 percent and corn by 18 percent.

Barantin stated that quarantine services are spread across 38 provinces with 161 service units located at airports, border crossing posts, seaports, and post offices.

Quarantine is also on standby 24 hours a day, especially at points of entry and exit with high traffic, such as the DKI Jakarta, East Java, and South Sulawesi regions.

Regarding the potential for violations, Hudiansyah stated that during Ramadan and leading up to the holidays, smuggling is generally more likely to occur, especially in border areas, both across national borders and at seaports.

Barantin has mapped out areas prone to food smuggling, including Entikong, West Kalimantan, which borders directly with another country.

Based on data on detentions during last year’s Ramadan, which coincided with March, the highest number of commodity detentions occurred in North Sumatra with 45 cases, North Sulawesi with 32 cases, and West Sumatra with 19 cases.

“To anticipate food smuggling, we continue to strengthen synergy with relevant agencies, both at border crossing posts, seaports, and airports. Points of entry and exit that are vulnerable to monitoring are being more closely monitored,” he said.

He added that commodities that enter without being accompanied by a health certificate do not guarantee their safety and quality, so monitoring is being tightened at vulnerable points of entry and exit.