October 24, 2025 | 12:47 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Ministry of National Development Planning (Bappenas) has revealed that 40 to 50 percent of the Indonesian population cannot afford a balanced, nutritious diet due to its high cost compared to a merely sufficient diet.
Director of Marine and Fisheries at Bappenas, Mohamad Rahmat Mulianda, stated that a study found the cost of implementing a balanced diet is 66 percent higher than that of a sufficient one.
"As a result, 40–50 percent of our population in Indonesia are unable to purchase a balanced, nutritious diet. This means, the higher the nutritional quality of food, the more people are unable to access it," Rahmat said, as quoted by Antara on Thursday, October 23, 2025.
Rahmat emphasized that this affordability challenge underscores the need to strengthen national food security not just in production but also in accessibility and affordability. He pointed out that many people in the remote, leading, and outermost (3T) regions face major obstacles in acquiring affordable, nutritious food.
He noted the irony of this food vulnerability in an agrarian, tropical country like Indonesia. "Yet we are an agrarian country. A nation in this tropical region should not experience food vulnerability because we possess abundant sunlight, fertile soil, and other necessary elements. This is certainly a challenge for us on how local food sources can effectively contribute to balanced nutrition and fulfill the food needs of every community," he explained.
Rahmat stressed the importance of diversifying local food to improve the consumption patterns of Indonesian society. This includes encouraging increased consumption of local sources of animal and plant protein, such as protein-rich sea produce (blue food).
The government is currently formulating a national food security strategy that focuses on five pillars: strengthening policies, increasing local food production, optimizing distribution, technological innovation, and providing incentives for local food business actors.
"Local food is not just a source of nutrition, but also a symbol of self-reliance and economic resilience at the grassroots level," Rahmat concluded.
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