Food Task Force Ready to Sanction Rogue Producers

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The government has tasked the Food Task Force (Satgas Pangan) with imposing sanctions on rogue producers seeking profits during the 2026 Eid al-Fitr period.

Vice Minister of Agriculture Sudaryono stated that the Food Task Force consists of employees and personnel from the Ministry of Agriculture, the National Food Agency, and the National Police Criminal Investigation Agency. This task force is responsible for ensuring that prices of strategic food commodities or basic necessities remain stable during the Nyepi and Eid al-Fitr 2026 holidays.

“How do we ensure that no individuals take advantage of the situation, especially during Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr,” Sudaryono said in a statement from the Government Communication Agency in Jakarta on Wednesday.

He cited the example of meat monitoring, where the Food Task Force will oversee production centres for meat, from cattle fattening sites and animal slaughterhouses (RPH) to downstream traders.

“Thus, we can trace when prices exceed the HET (highest retail price). Then, the trace will reveal who is raising prices not in accordance with the rules,” he said.

The same applies to monitoring egg and chicken meat commodities. In this way, the Food Task Force can easily monitor at which points producers engage in price mark-ups.

If it is proven that prices are being hiked, the Food Task Force will immediately impose sanctions ranging from administrative measures such as revoking business licences to criminal penalties if there is fraud.

According to him, prices of these strategic food commodities are receiving significant attention from President Prabowo Subianto.

Sudaryono also urged the public to actively report issues, either by phone or through social media.

“You can go viral with it, that’s fine. But of course, our task is to resolve the problem, find the issue, and discover solutions,” he explained.

Meanwhile, the Secretary General of the National Food Agency (Bapanas) Sarwo Edhy stated that the government is also conducting the Cheap Food Movement more frequently.

This movement invites food business actors to provide essential staple goods at standard prices.

“So that the public feels helped. This is also very important for intervention when prices spike high, especially in traditional markets, that’s where the indicator appears,” said Sarwo Edhy.