REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) has released the results of synthetic rice test. It said that the rice finding in Bekasi do not contain plastic compounds.
However, these results differ from the results of Sucofindo which stating that rice contained plastic compound. According to the Member of Commission IV of DPR, Ono Surono, the differences in the results of the examination are oddity.
According to him, the results released by BPOM only declared that rice was not plastic rice but there was no information whether the rice is contaminated or not. Whereas Sucofindo mentioned that there were plastic compounds for the manufacture of the pipe in the rice. He also questioned the actual form of rice being examined.
"Is it true that it has the shape of rice? Is it really just mixed or contaminated with chemicals such as plastics materials?"said Ono when contacted by ROL on Friday, May 29.
Other oddities, according to Ono, the rice was only found in Bekasi. Therefore, it needs to be clarified so that people also know what rice was found in Bekasi.
"If it is true that Sucofindo rice contains plastic compounds, why it was only in Bekasi and only in that store?” he said.
Moreover, this issue is not only disturbing the public, but also affected on the decrease in rice traders income. Ono expressed his concern that it was a sabotage aimed to create a sense of insecurity to the people to eat rice. As a result, it also could be detrimental to farmer.
Professor of the Bogor Agriculture University (IPB), Dwi Andreas assessed that it is important for the whole community to believe that rice was found in Bekasi, not rice plastic. He added, it was very absurd if anyone mixing rice with plastic.
"The government only needs to explain that the rice which studied by Sucofindo was only a contaminated rice," he told ROL on Thursday, May 28.
He continued, if there are people who make plastic rice it does not make sense because of the strange motives. Dwi explained, related to the findings of the rice, maybe only rice which contaminated by plastic content. According to him, the reason could be polluted because there is much rice that does not have good quality.
"Like Bulog rice which stored on a long time in the warehouse and then polished and bleached. Not to mention that there is rice that has been stored in sack over a year, there must be a part of the sack which contaminated into rice," he explained.
Therefore he assessed that rice plastic issue was just a hoax. Still according to Dwi, now there are no problem so the government just need to explain to public.
Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman mentioned the issues related to the circulation of plastic rice in a number of traditional markets until spread to the community, it does not exist.
“I need to straighten this again, there is no plastic rice and it’s impossible to exist. Because, if you want to count the plastic price currently 12,000 IDR per kilogram, while ordinary rice was only 7,000 to 10,000 IDR per kilogram. So it is not possible if there is plastic rice," he affirmed on Wednesday, May 27, quoted by Antara.
According to him by checking in the field, both in traditional markets and modern markets by police, BPOM, Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture provincial and district/city the results were negative.
Results of laboratory tests conducted during the week by forensic from police, as well as BPOM, Ministry of Trade and Ministry of Agriculture, stated the result was negative and there was no plastic compounds. Now, rice samples tested positive by Sucofindo which stated that the rice containing plastic compounds, has been received by the laboratory at the University of Indonesia (UI) and Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) to be examined further.
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