Jakarta, June 9 -- The National Food Agency (Bapanas) and Trade Ministry have strengthened a strategic cooperation to tighten oversight of food safety monitoring across Indonesia against threat of toxic pesticide residues in fresh products.

The cross-sector collaboration was formalized on Monday (June 8) with the signing of a joint agreement in Jakarta, timed to commemorate World Food Safety Day.

According to Bapanas Deputy for Consumption Diversification and Food Safety, Andriko Noto Susanto, food safety is a non-negotiable aspect of public health.

Food must be entirely free from chemical, biological and physical contaminants before it reaches consumers, he emphasized.

Currently, the government's primary concern is the prevalence of ...