It is estimated that nearly 6,500 people have suffered from food poisoning linked to Indonesia's school feeding program.
The number of cases linked to the free nutritious meal (MBG) program has reportedly reached 6,452. The initiative was designed to improve nutrition among schoolchildren and was launched by President Prabowo Subianto in early 2025. The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) reported 70 cases of poisoning, affecting 5,914 people from January to September.
Program-associated food poisoning is believed to be caused by several factors: microbiological and chemical contamination, improper food handling and storage, and delays between preparation and serving.
Delay between preparation and serving
Dadan Hindayana, head of the National Nutrition Agency, recently visited patients in Chipongkor, West Bandung Regency, West Java.
He said initial findings point to an error by the Service Provisioning Services (SPPG) in preparing food ahead of time, resulting in it being stored for too long before distribution.
According to Dr. Merita Arini, a public health expert at the University of Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY), MBG is a good program that deserves to be continued.
“Numerous studies have shown that school lunch programs have positive impacts, from monitoring food and hygiene to improving student attendance and performance. However, when there are thousands of cases of food poisoning, it is clearly a concern. This means we need to evaluate many aspects, including oversight, food distribution and community involvement,” she said.
“The supply chain must be extremely strict. It includes fresh ingredients, hygienic processing, sterile equipment and a distribution channel that should not be too long. If distribution takes too long, the risk of contamination increases.”
System failure
Scientists from the University of Gadjah Mada (UGM) said repeated incidents within a short period of time highlight fundamental problems in the school feeding system.
According to reports, laboratory tests confirmed the presence of E. coli, Clostridia, Bacillus Cereus, Salmonella and Staphylococcus in food samples and vomit of the victims.
“I believe these cases indicate a systemic failure in food preparation, processing and distribution. Weak coordination and assessment mean that careful analysis and systemic improvements are urgently needed,” said Professor Sri Rahardjo.
Rahardjo said the biggest challenge in maintaining hygiene standards in the MBG program is the poor timing of food consumption. Other problems included the quality of water used in food preparation, human resource limitations and lack of understanding among food industry workers.
Pramudya Kurnia, a lecturer in dietetics at the University of Muhammadiyah Surakarta (UMS), called on the government to evaluate the implementation of the program.
Weak supervision of mass food management systems is one of the main causes of poisoning cases. Pramudya called on the government to audit raw materials and suppliers, ensure training and certification of kitchen staff, and implement standardized production and distribution processes.
“Training on food hygiene and safety should be mandatory. A proper checklist of food ingredients, including strict adherence to expiration dates, is also required,” he said.
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