September 12, 2025 | 09:32 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs, Zulkifli Hasan, revealed that 9 out of 14 containers of imported goods from the Philippines were found to be exposed to cesium-137 (Cs-137) radioactivity. However, all 14 containers of imported goods were subsequently re-exported to the Philippines. "These will be sent back soon," said Zulkifli at Graha Mandiri, Central Jakarta, on Friday, September 12, 2025.
Zulkifli stated that the radioactive exposure from the containers containing metal powder or scrap was discovered after an inspection. Zulkifli said that, in addition to being detected for radioactive exposure, the imported products did not have permits from the Ministry of Trade.
The coordinating minister expressed that a reassessment and tightening of regulations, especially for waste-containing goods, particularly scrap, will be conducted.
Zulkifli mentioned that this exposure was discovered shortly after the NFA reported that frozen shrimp from Indonesia were exposed to Cs-137. "Indonesia is actually a victim. A victim because at the same time, our government discovered the containers (exposed to radioactivity)," he said.
Until now, Zulkifli has stated that he has held two coordination meetings with the relevant agencies regarding the case of contaminated imported shrimp. Zulhas also formed a task force to handle the case of frozen shrimp processed by PT Bahari Makmur Sejati (BMS Foods).
Zulkifli mentioned that the shrimp is suspected to be contaminated due to the activities of PT PMT in the industrial area of Cikande, Banten. The government has also localized PT PMT and will soon carry out decontamination of the affected area.
Zulkifli stated that the government is conducting a thorough investigation based on a scientific approach that aligns with international food safety standards. He also requested that the export destination countries not worry about this shrimp case. "Food security is our top priority, and the government is acting quickly," he said.
The investigation into the radioactive contamination of the frozen shrimp processed by BMS Foods led to a scrap metal processing plant. The BMS Foods facility and the scrap metal processing plant are located within the same industrial area in Cikande, Serang, Banten.
Deputy for Law Enforcement of the Ministry of Environment/Environmental Control Agency, Rizal Irawan, revealed that the initial investigation confirmed that the raw shrimp materials processed by BMS Foods and exported to the United States were safe. The investigation also involved the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, the Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency, and the Police.
At the BMS Foods facility, the joint team detected the radioactive element, cesium-137, in the blower and ventilator. Although the concentration was low and well below the threshold, the finding was immediately followed by decontamination of the entire factory area.
Further tracking then led the team to a higher radiation level. The first location was in a pile of scrap metal in an empty hut, outside the BMS Foods factory area. The second location visited by the team was the PT Peter Metal Technology (PMT) plant in the same industrial area, when the tracking radius was expanded to two kilometers from BMS Foods.
The PMT plant is suspected to be linked to the potential source of contamination. The radiation level found at this location was in the range of 0.3-0.5 microsieverts per hour, higher than the normal condition of 0.1 microsieverts per hour.
According to Rizal, this company also has a connection with PT NAC, which is currently being investigated by the joint team. "Why the suspicion? Because the examination results of the production equipment contain Cesium," said Rizal as quoted from Antara.
Based on the information gathered by Tempo, the seal at the BMS Foods factory has now been reopened. However, exports cannot be conducted yet because the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the United States still lists it in the import alert.
Zacharias Wuragil contributed to the writing of this article
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