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fficials found rotten meat being sold at a number of traditional markets in Bantul, Yogyakarta, in a raid on Wednesday.

The raid was jointly conducted by officials at the Industry, Trade and Cooperative Agency, Agriculture and Forestry Agency, Health Agency and Public Order Agency.

'We found three kilograms of rotten beef at Imogiri traditional market. It's endangering human health,' said Bantul Agriculture and Forestry Agency veterinary community health division head Witanta.

He added that the agency had provided chillers for meat traders in the traditional markets to keep the meat fresh.

Witanta called on customers to be cautious when buying meat to prevent them from purchasing water-injected meat or chicken, especially because of the high demand for the commodity during Ramadhan.

Industry, Trade and Cooperative Agency head Sulistyanto said there had been a decrease in the prices of vegetables, indicating the supply was smooth.

On Wednesday, the price of chili or cabai rawit, for instance, decreased from Rp 70,000 (US$7) to Rp 48,000 per kilogram.

The garlic price dropped from Rp 20,000 to Rp 15,000 per kilogram, while the price of large red chili declined from Rp 21,000 to Rp 18,000 per kilogram.

The prices of other staple foods such as sugar and cooking oil, according to Sulistyanto, were relatively stable.

'We will continue our monitoring to control the prices. We're ready to conduct market operations whenever the prices become uncontrolled ahead of the Idul Fitri celebration,' he said.