KSP confirms food supply abundant and prices under control

Chief of Presidential Staff General TNI (Ret.) Dudung Abdurachman made an unannounced visit to the Kramat Jati Wholesale Market in Jakarta on Tuesday to directly monitor price stability and the availability of horticultural commodities and rice. During his inspection, Dudung found price fluctuations in chillies and shallots. However, he confirmed the situation on the ground is relatively stable and prices are generally under control. “I am ensuring, in line with the President’s programme and national priority programmes, one of which is food security. We saw that chilli prices, shallot prices, and others have experienced an increase,” Dudung said. Although prices for several horticultural commodities rose after the Eid holiday, Dudung assessed this as a normal and fluctuating dynamic. He also noted that weather factors have influenced supply from production centres such as Bali and Cianjur. “The domestic supply is abundant. For food matters, God willing, and the public, especially farmers, with the agricultural system being promoted—where the quality of farmers, fertilisers, seeds, and especially extension services from agricultural agencies are improving—production is ultimately increasing,” he explained. Dudung also highlighted a downward trend in direct purchasing power at the wholesale market. Field findings indicated one trigger is the distribution system, whereby distributors now reach communities directly. He also jokingly mentioned a change in household consumption patterns coinciding with the government’s Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme. “The purchasing power I observed at the market is declining. I asked, and the cause is a system where distributors go directly to the community—to people’s markets—because this is a wholesale market. Secondly, many people are not cooking as much. There are also anecdotes that children are being fed at school, so households are not cooking as much,” he stated. To complete monitoring data, Dudung continued his inspection to the Cipinang Rice Wholesale Market to see rice price fluctuations more comprehensively. As a follow-up, the Presidential Staff Office, together with the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Trade, National Food Agency, and other relevant ministries and agencies, will continue to evaluate and monitor market price movements periodically to maintain supply and food price stability, as well as to preserve the equilibrium of public purchasing power.