September 26, 2025 | 08:30 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Chairperson of the Indonesian Catering Association (PPJI), Minerva Taran, criticized the government’s Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program, calling its kitchen management careless and poorly planned.
She described the program’s execution as “systemic negligence” that risks undermining its very purpose.
According to Minerva, some MBG kitchens are rented from catering businesses, yet the government entrusts their operations to heads of Nutrition Service Units (SPPG), individuals who have only undergone a three-month crash course.
“This is where the problem begins. Kitchens should be managed by professional catering providers, but instead, they are handed over to inexperienced people who were forced to learn on the fly,” Minerva said in a written statement on Thursday, September 24, 2025.
Currently, there are around 8,000 MBG kitchens across Indonesia. While some are run by professional catering operators, many are managed by local politicians, members of parliament, or residents near the kitchen sites.
Minerva warned that this lack of professional oversight exposes the program to a high risk of failure.
She went further, warning that instead of fulfilling its goal of providing nutritious meals for schoolchildren, the program could end up serving “free poison” due to poor food handling and mismanagement.
“Children who should be returning home with full stomachs may instead come back vomiting, suffering diarrhea, and traumatized,” said Minerva, who also runs a catering business in Jakarta.
Minerva urged the government to immediately conduct a thorough evaluation of the program’s kitchen management.
“This is not just about cooking—it’s about risk management, food safety, and nutritional standards. Do not put children’s lives in the hands of amateurs who only took a three-month course,” she stressed.
BGN Defends Program, Introduces New Kitchen SOPs
Responding to the criticism, Deputy Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Nanik S. Dayang, said the agency has introduced stricter operating standards for MBG kitchens.
She explained that the Nutrition Service Units (SPPG) and their partner organizations are now required to employ at least one certified chef and one assistant chef.
The policy was enacted after a series of food poisoning incidents involving MBG meals.
“If they are certified chefs, they will understand proper standards,” Nanik said at a press conference on the verification of MBG program partners at Artotel Kota Wisata Cibubur, Bogor, West Java, on Thursday, September 25, 2025.
Nanik confirmed that the Nutrition Service Unit kitchen in West Bandung Regency, where a mass food poisoning case occurred, has been shut down after investigators found it had failed to follow standard procedures.
“This is a serious violation, and BGN apologizes for the incident,” she said.
She also noted that repeated cases of mass poisoning affecting schoolchildren could potentially lead to criminal charges.
“If we identify criminal elements or intentional negligence, legal action is possible,” Nanik added.
Dinda Shabrina contributed to the writing of this article.
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