Indonesian BPOM to Take the Rap If Noodles Bad

Jakarta. The head of the country’s Food and Drug Monitoring Agency said on Thursday that it was ready to take the blame if Indomie instant noodles were proven unsafe for human consumption.

Kustantinah, head of the agency also known as BPOM, made the statement during a meeting with the House of Representatives Commission IX, which oversees health affairs, and noodle-maker Indofood.

The meeting was called to discuss the Indomie instant noodles being yanked from store shelves in Taiwan last week and later by some chains in Hong Kong.

BPOM, which issued an immediate statement declaring Indomie noodles to be safe, has been criticized for rushing to defend the product without first conducting proper tests to back its claims.

“The issue is just about difference in standards between Indonesia and Taiwan over [allowed] levels of preservatives,” Kustantinah said.

‘’We consider the product safe for consumption and we will bear the responsibility if something happens to the consumer.”

On Wednesday, consumer advocates blasted BPOM for not following Singapore’s and Brunei’s example, which immediately conducted tests on the noodles.

Fransiscus Welirang, director of Indofood, had previously said that although the company had complied with all the necessary regulations, Taiwan had higher food-safety standards than other countries.

Separately, Lily Asdjudiredja, a Golkar lawmaker from House Commission VI, which oversees trade affairs, challenged BPOM to carry out independent tests to prove its claims.

“If BPOM is confident it can prove the safety of Indomie, then conduct research and invite independent researchers,” she said.

In the meantime, Lily said, BPOM should order Indofood to stop distributing its products, which are consumed widely throughout this country.

“Now BPOM seems to be acting like it is the public relations officer of Indofood,” she said.

The Commission IX meeting concluded with the decision to establish a working committee to discuss food additives.

Ahmad Nizar Shihab, deputy head of the commission, said it would give BPOM recommendations on better monitoring practices. “We will investigate any related cases, not only the Indomie case, but also other cases.”

However, Kustantinah reminded lawmakers that BPOM should not be blamed for all food and drug safety issues, saying it had limited authority over distribution and an insufficient budget for testing.

BPOM’s budget this year is around Rp 627 billion ($70 million), and is proposing a Rp 2.2 trillion allocation for next year.

[Source]