JAKARTA. The Indonesian government claims that it will impose sanctions on sugar producers and distributors that speculate or take large profits during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Agus Suparmanto, Minister of Trade, said that currently the Ministry of Trade together with the Food Task Force has formed a sugar monitoring team. "To ensure that the distribution of sugar to 34 provinces is in accordance with the HET (Highest Retail Price) that has been set," said Suparmanto through an official statement.
Suparmanto admitted, so far the Food Task Force has caught PTPN 2 in North Sumatra for selling sugar for Rp 12,900 per kilogram, more than HET. He also claimed to have asked PTPN 2 to evaluate its auction price, because it has the potential to increase the selling price of sugar at the consumer level.
Previously, the Ministry of Trade had asked sugar producers to distribute their sugar reserves to modern retailers. In addition, the Ministry of Trade also asked distributors to shorten their distribution lines. (KR/AR)