Indonesia Investigates Food Poisoning Affecting Thousands in Free School Meal Program

Nearly 700 children in Indonesia's Yogyakarta province fell ill due to food poisoning linked to meals provided by President Prabowo Subianto’s free school meal programme. Launched in January as a flagship initiative to combat child malnutrition, the programme has since seen around 15,000 children fall ill, prompting calls from the NGO JPPI to suspend it temporarily. Authorities attribute the poisoning incidents to improper food storage and late delivery of meals, with investigations ongoing and affected kitchens temporarily closed. In response, the National Nutrition Agency has instructed kitchens to reduce meal portions to maintain freshness and prevent further cases. President Prabowo established a ministerial task force, including the health minister and the nutrition agency chief, to better supervise the programme, which aims to serve around 70 million beneficiaries by the end of 2025. Despite the health concerns, Prabowo defends the programme as a critical effort against malnutrition, noting that poisoning cases are low relative to the number of meals served.