Over 800 Students Suffer Mass Food Poisoning From Free School Meals In Indonesia

Over 800 Students Affected by Mass Food Poisoning From Government-Sponsored School Meals in Indonesia

Local authorities have pledged to enhance monitoring of meal preparation facilities, officials announced

Jakarta:

More than 800 students became ill in two separate incidents of mass food poisoning this week after consuming meals provided through Indonesia's government-sponsored free school meal program, officials confirmed on Friday.

One incident affected over 500 students, marking the largest outbreak since the implementation of President Prabowo Subianto's signature initiative.

According to the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Ian), an Indonesian think tank, more than 4,000 children have suffered from food poisoning after consuming these meals between January, when the program launched, and August, raising significant concerns about oversight measures.

In West Java province, 569 students across five schools in the Garut region experienced symptoms including nausea and vomiting on Wednesday after eating chicken and rice meals prepared by a single free meals kitchen the previous day, according to Nurdin Yana, secretary of the Garut regional government, who spoke with Reuters.

"As of Friday, ten students remain hospitalized, while the others have recovered," Yana reported. Initially, approximately 30 students required hospitalization, with the remainder receiving treatment at home.

Yana stated that local authorities will strengthen surveillance of the meal preparation facility but emphasized that the program would continue operating. However, students will temporarily receive simpler food options such as bread, milk, boiled eggs, and fruit.

A second mass food poisoning incident linked to the program occurred Wednesday in the Banggai Islands of Central Sulawesi province, affecting 277 students, according to the National Nutrition Agency, which oversees the initiative. The agency confirmed that meal distribution in that area has been temporarily suspended.

Prasetyo Hadi, spokesperson for President Prabowo, issued an apology on Friday for the "recurrence of cases in several areas that are, of course, not what we had hoped for or intentional."

The rapid expansion of the program, which now reaches over 20 million recipients with an ambitious target of 83 million by year-end, has prompted questions about standards and oversight. The initiative currently operates with a budget of 171 trillion rupiah ($10.32 billion).

Officials have confirmed that funding for the program will double in the coming year.