Rice Price Under Spotlight as Government to Evaluate HAP and HET
Rice prices became a key point of discussion in talks on government rice reserve management between state logistics firm Perum Bulog and Commission IV of the House of Representatives (DPR RI) in Jakarta on Monday (7/9/2026). The price evaluation will involve the National Food Agency (Bapanas) and the Ministry of Agriculture.
Bulog President Director Ahmad Rizal Ramdhani said Commission IV had reminded of the importance of evaluating the Government Purchase Price (HAP) and the Highest Retail Price (HET) for rice. The evaluation plan could be discussed further in a meeting involving Bapanas and the Ministry of Agriculture.
“There needs to be an evaluation meeting regarding HAP and HET going forward,” Rizal said at Bulog’s office, quoted on Tuesday (8/9/2026).
The discussion formed part of a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) with Commission IV of the DPR RI on the management of government rice reserves. In the forum, Commission IV also offered a number of suggestions to strengthen the implementation of the government’s rice programme.
Separately, the government is preparing an additional one million tonnes of rice under the Food Supply and Price Stabilisation (SPHP) programme. The addition was approved in consideration of the potential impact of El Nino, which is expected to persist until March 2027.
“The proposed additional one million tonnes of SPHP will be used until March 2027,” Rizal said.
He explained that the distribution of the additional SPHP rice will be directed based on potential vulnerabilities arising from El Nino. The condition is judged likely to trigger harvest failures, necessitating intervention to keep rice affordable for the public.
Rizal added that the quality of SPHP rice was also a concern for Commission IV. Rice distributed to the public must remain in good condition — clean, hygienic, and of acceptable quality to consumers.
“We must not let the rice be of poor quality, so that people end up disappointed,” said the retired three-star general.
Beyond SPHP, the government has agreed to the downstream processing of 380,000 tonnes of deteriorated rice into rice flour. The rice, stored for more than ten months, is deemed to meet the requirements for use as flour raw material.
Bulog will prepare the raw material to be auctioned through the State Assets and Auction Service Office (KPKNL) to businesses and SMEs with rice flour processing facilities. The move is expected to reduce potential state losses from rice that continues to deteriorate in quality, while also reducing the need for imported broken rice.