HKTI: Strong Rice Reserves, Production Rises in the Last Year

JAKARTA — The Indonesian Farmers’ Harmony Association (HKTI) has emphasised that the actual conditions on the ground indicate that national rice stocks are plentiful, and the direction towards self-sufficiency is strengthening.

HKTI’s Acting Chairman Bachtiar Utomo stated that various criticisms questioning the achievements of rice self-sufficiency do not align with the current facts in the agricultural sector.

According to Bachtiar, the direct visit by President Prabowo Subianto along with Deputy Minister of Agriculture Sudaryono to several Bulog warehouses serves as concrete evidence of the national food situation.

He stressed that the direct monitoring results show that national rice stocks are at a high level, even described as one of the largest in history.

This condition reflects the state’s readiness to maintain supply stability and prices.

In addition to the abundant stocks, Bachtiar also highlighted the increase in national rice production over the last year.

“This is not just numbers on paper. Production has genuinely increased, harvests have grown, and farmers are directly feeling the impact,” he said.

According to him, the combination of strong stocks and continuously rising production serves as an important indicator that Indonesia is on the right track towards rice self-sufficiency.

“If stocks are full and production is rising, then the direction towards self-sufficiency is no longer just discourse, but a process that is underway and increasingly approaching the target,” Bachtiar continued.

Therefore, the voices and experiences of farmers are considered to need to be the primary reference in assessing the achievements of the national food sector.

HKTI, Bachtiar continued, will continue to support the government’s steps in strengthening national food security.

This support includes efforts to maintain synergy between production at the farmer level and the management of national reserves to run optimally.