Indonesia grapples with food safety concerns

Editor's note: In this weekly feature China Daily gives voice to Asia and its people. The stories presented come mainly from the Asia News Network (ANN), of which China Daily is among its 20 leading titles.

Nearly 2,000 students in Indonesia have suffered food poisoning from the free nutritious meal program this year, despite its zero-incident goal, sparking doubts over the Indonesian government's commitment to food safety in the ambitious program.

The latest outbreak occurred on Jan 30 in Muaro Jambi Regency, Jambi, where about 145 students, from kindergarten to high school, fell sick after eating soto (traditional Indonesian soup) provided by a local Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit. Nearly 100 required hospitalization, and two remained under treatment as of Feb 3.

On Feb 2, 134 students in West Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara, reported symptoms of food poisoning after consuming stir-fried chayote, bok choy, bean sprouts and boiled eggs provided by the government. Some students said the vegetables appeared spoiled.

On Jan 28, roughly 540 students and teachers at a high school in Kudus, Central Java, suffered diarrhea, nausea and dizziness after eating meals of soto, rice and fried tempeh under the free meal program. Forty-six students were hospitalized.

Dadan Hindayana, head of the National Nutrition Agency, has apologized for recent food poisoning cases linked to the government's free meals program, saying operations at all involved Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units have been suspended pending investigation.

"I apologize to the beneficiaries who experienced this unpleasant incident. We have conducted investigations and analyses of the Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit involved," Dadan said as quoted by Kompas.

He said one Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit will receive a "yellow card" for serious violations, including outsourcing food to outside parties, which prevented proper monitoring of the cooking process. While he did not clarify the penalties of the yellow card, Dadan promised strict measures to ensure students receive safe, high-quality meals.

The agency head also said menus would be reviewed to reduce the risk of future food safety incidents.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto launched the free meals program on Jan 6, 2025, as one of his initiatives aimed at addressing the country's chronic stunting problem.

Since its launch, however, the program has been plagued by a series of food safety incidents, with more than 15,000 students reported to have suffered food poisoning between January and November last year, according to the Center of Economic and Law Studies.