Residents enthusiastically hunt for "meugang" meat at Lhokseumawe market in Aceh

Lhokseumawe, Aceh — Survivors of flash floods and landslides enthusiastically packed Pasar Inpres Lhokseumawe in Aceh Province to hunt for meat as part of the meugang rayeuk tradition ahead of Ramadan 1447 Hijriah/2026.

“The meat is for making soup. The children are coming home from Banda Aceh, and we want to eat together,” said Meta when encountered at Pasar Inpres Lhokseumawe on Wednesday.

Meta said the beef she purchased was priced at around Rp170,000 to Rp180,000 per kilogramme. In addition to buying meat, she also purchased cooking ingredients such as spices and vegetables.

Meanwhile, a trader named Azhur said he had been selling since Tuesday (17 February 2026) and had sold 10 whole cattle at an average price of Rp180,000 per kilogramme.

Azhur said his sales peaked on Tuesday evening after the Ministry of Religious Affairs confirmed that the beginning of fasting, or 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijriah, would fall on Thursday (19 February 2026).

“I’ve been selling since yesterday — 10 cattle sold,” said Azhur.

Another cattle trader, known familiarly as “Bang Bing”, said that despite the flash flood disaster, residents were still buying meat in large numbers for the meugang tradition.

“Plenty of people are buying — not bad at all considering the floods,” he said.

Bing only began selling meat on Tuesday (18 February 2026) afternoon. Wednesday marked the peak of the meugang celebration, being the last day before the fasting month.

According to the official website of the Aceh Provincial Government, meugang or makmeugang is a tradition of cooking meat to be enjoyed together with family, relatives, and orphans. The meugang tradition is observed by the Acehnese community to welcome Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr, and Eid al-Adha.