Trade Minister: Minyakita Prices Slightly Up, But No Stock Shortages

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Trade Minister Budi Santoso has affirmed that although there is a slight price increase for Minyakita due to the rising cost of plastic packaging, there is no stock shortage in the market. “Yes, there is (a price) slight increase. Because, of course, it’s an impact from their (Minyakita) packaging being all plastic. But there is no such thing as a shortage,” said Trade Minister Budi during the Indo Intertex 2026 event at the Jakarta International Expo, Jakarta, on Thursday. Previously reported, Minyakita prices in some regions as of April 2026 were observed at around Rp15,800-Rp15,900 per litre, or slightly above the government’s Maximum Retail Price (HET) of Rp15,700 per litre. This increase is caused by production cost constraints for plastic packaging and distribution, which is one of the impacts of the Iran-US-Israel war. Minyakita is also considered the sole indicator of fluctuations in cooking oil prices, both for premium types and bulk oil. “Yesterday I went to modern retailers, cooking oil is plentiful. So there is no such thing as cooking oil being scarce. Because people look at not the cooking oil itself, but they look at Minyakita,” said the Trade Minister. “It seems that if Minyakita is expensive, people say cooking oil is expensive. If Minyakita is unavailable, (they say) it’s scarce, even though, of course, there is plenty. There are second-brand oils. We ask producers to make second-brand oils. Then there is also premium oil,” he added. In addition, Budi mentioned that the proposal to increase the Domestic Market Obligation (DMO) quota for Minyakita to 65% is still possible because some producers have routinely delivered more than 35%. Based on the provisions of Minister of Trade Regulation (Permendag) Number 43 of 2025, the minimum obligation for Minyakita distribution by state-owned food enterprises is currently 35%. This means that increasing the quota above that figure is still possible. “Earlier I called the Director of Bulog, called the Director of RNI. So in the Permendag, it’s a minimum of 35%. Minimum, those who want 65%, 70%, that’s no problem,” said Trade Minister Budi.