MBG Project Pause Has Minimal Impact on Tabanan Vegetable Traders

The Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) project has been suspended during the school holiday season. Nevertheless, vegetable sales at the Baturiti Vegetable Market in Tabanan, Bali, have not been significantly affected by the pause in the MBG programme.

Ni Made Erni, one of the vegetable traders, noted that while sales have decreased recently, she attributes this decline to the religious holiday season, spanning from Galungan to Kuningan in Bali. “During the holidays, public purchasing power decreases,” Erni stated on Tuesday (30/06/2026).

Erni acknowledged that her stall has established partnerships with several Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG) kitchens in Tabanan, supplying vegetables for the MBG programme. However, she assessed that the impact of the MBG project’s holiday break on the decline in vegetable prices is not substantial. According to her, while demand from the food provider kitchens has decreased slightly, it is not significant.

“Usually, several baskets are collected (by the SPPG), and now they have indeed decreased slightly. However, the impact is not too large because the peak harvest factor is more dominant,” Erddi added.

Erni explained that the prices of several vegetable commodities have been falling recently, influenced by the peak harvest and weather conditions. The types of vegetables affected by this oversupply are primarily green leafy vegetables.

During the rainy season, Erni noted that vegetable production usually decreases, causing prices to tend higher. Conversely, during the current period of abundant harvest, prices have dropped to around Rp 2,000 - 3,000 per kilogram.

Furthermore, other commodities such as bird’s eye chilli have also seen price reductions. Currently, bird’s eye chilli is being sold at approximately Rp 40,000 per kilogram, which is lower than in previous periods.

Among the vegetables experiencing price drops are bok choy, which has plummeted from Rp 9,000 per kilogram to around Rp 3,000 per kilogram, and Chinese cabbage, which has dropped from Rp 8,000 per kilogram to Rp 4,000 per kilogram.

Meanwhile, the prices of other vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, and green beans remain relatively stable. “However, the price of carrots remains high at Rp 27,000 per kilogram, up from Rp 13,000 per kilogram,” she explained.