Titiek Soeharto Criticizes Aging Rice Stock to Minister Amran

Titiek Soeharto, Chair of Commission IV of the Indonesian House of Representatives, has criticized the Minister of Agriculture, Amran Sulaiman, over the quality of rice stocks held by the state logistics agency, Bulog. Soeharto reported that out of a total stock of 5 million tons, 1.5 million tons were dark white, indicating they were over six months old and potentially degraded.

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You have a stock of 5 million, but 1.5 million tons are dark white.

During a working meeting, Soeharto recounted a visit to a Bulog warehouse in Madura, East Java, where she found 400,000 tons of rice out of a 1.4 million-ton stock to be over a year old. She urged Minister Sulaiman to expedite the distribution of rice from Bulog warehouses to prevent such issues and suggested that rice older than one year should be repurposed as animal feed rather than distributed for human consumption.

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So, it doesn't happen again that things we don't want happen. Don't give a target for shooting.

Minister Sulaiman acknowledged the concerns, stating he had summoned the CEO of Bulog, Ahmad Rizal Ramdhani. He confirmed that approximately 3,619 tons of rice were found to be damaged in Madura. Sulaiman also reported that out of the total 5 million tons of stock, 93,488 tons were of reduced quality. However, he estimated that about 10 percent, or 9,000 tons, could be repaired or processed into flour.

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This will definitely be asked tomorrow. Don't let this problem be on you.

Sulaiman explained that the rice degradation occurs because current stocks are readily available, unlike previous years when reliance on imports meant stocks were depleted. He added that Bulog is developing 100 modern warehouses capable of storing rice for up to three years to improve preservation.

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But we ask Bulog to be vigilant from now on, we are working our hardest.