Antara, Jakarta – Bulog Public Corporation, Indonesia's logistics bureau, said it secured 750,000 tonnes of Government Food Reserve rice stocks distributed across all Bulog warehouses in Indonesia to face El Nino.

"No need to worry, we have 750,000 tonnes of rice in stock. And until today, Bulog has absorbed more than 700,000 tonnes of domestic farmers' rice and will continue to collect as long as the production is ongoing and lawful," said the Business Director of Bulog Public Corporation Febby Novita in Jakarta, on Thursday, July 20, 2023.

Febby said that there is a possibility of food insecurity that causes a jolt in food prices. However, Bulog has carried out measures to mitigate the issue by ensuring the national rice stocks are secure. "Bulog will continue to make sure the rice stock is available, especially at times of adversity like this," she said.

Febby added that Bulog will maximize every instrument to anticipate El Nino and guarantee food availability and accessibility by involving farmers, traditional milling, and other stakeholders. Bulog also actively coordinated with the central and regional governments to maintain an even distribution of food across the country.

"Aside from ensuring the availability of stock, Bulog also provides rice locally through offline and online measures, the modern retail network, and Bulog's fostered partners," she said.

Every measure taken by Bulog is intended to maintain the possible rice stability and inflation as well as increase the government rice reserve. Meanwhile, to anticipate the consequence of El Nino, Bulog is also authorized to boost supply through imports. Presently, Bulog has realized 500,000 tonnes of imported supply and the ongoing second phase amounts to 300,000 tonnes.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/1750225/bulog-rice-stock-safe-to-anticipate-el-nin