Task Force Cracks Down on Food Violations! 77 Tonnes of Illegal Meat and Formaldehyde-Laced Noodles Discovered
The National Task Force for Food Violation Enforcement has been working swiftly in anticipation of the upcoming series of National Religious Holidays (HBKN) in 2026. Over the past three weeks, hundreds of businesses have been warned, and several cases are being processed legally.
The task force, coordinated by the Head of the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Unit (Kabareskrim Polri), has been conducting intensive monitoring since February 5th to February 25th, 2026. This oversight is in preparation for the celebrations of Lunar New Year, Ramadan, Nyepi, and Eid al-Fitr 1447 Hijri.
A total of 28,270 monitoring activities have been carried out across Indonesia. From these thousands of activities, the task force has uncovered various violations, ranging from pricing and distribution issues to suspected criminal acts in the food sector.
Specifically, officers conducted 2,461 inspections of distributors or producers and 898 coordination meetings to replenish empty stocks. In addition, 350 warning letters were issued to businesses that violated regulations. The monitoring efforts were also strengthened with 35 samples taken for laboratory testing to ensure the safety and quality of products. The task force also recommended the revocation of one business license and three distribution licenses.
As a result of the monitoring, four criminal cases in the food sector are being handled by the police. The Head of the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Unit, Commissioner General Pol Syahardiantono, accompanied by the Director of Special Economic Crimes at the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Unit, Brigadier General Pol Ade Safri Simanjuntak, and the Deputy for Food Availability and Stabilization at the National Food Agency (Bapanas RI) and also the Executive Chairman of the Task Force, I Gusti Ketut Astawa, affirmed that this enforcement is to maintain supply stability and protect the public.
“The Food Violation Enforcement Task Force continues to monitor various regions to ensure that distribution runs smoothly, prices remain controlled, and the products circulating are safe for public consumption,” said Syahardiantono on Thursday, February 26th, 2026.
The first case was uncovered by the Riau Islands Police regarding the smuggling of illegal food and violations of animal, plant, and fish quarantine regulations. Two suspects, with the initials LM (owner of the goods) and H (captain of the ship), were apprehended. The confiscated evidence includes two motorboats, 5,037 boxes containing beef, chicken, and pork, totaling 77 tonnes of meat, 157 sacks of dolls, and 125 sacks of used toys. The second case was handled by the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Police regarding the practice of repackaging Bulog’s 5-kilogram SPHP rice into plain 50-kilogram packages.