Nearly 2,000 Fall Ill in Suspected Food Poisoning Linked to Indonesia’s Free School Meals Program

Nearly 2,000 individuals, predominantly students, experienced suspected food poisoning from meals distributed under President Prabowo Subianto’s Free Nutritious Meals program. The incidents occurred between Tuesday and Thursday across multiple regions, including East Java, Central Java, West Sumatra, Aceh, and South Sulawesi. These outbreaks add to existing concerns about food safety and follow previous food poisoning cases and corruption allegations related to the rapidly expanding initiative.

• Nearly 2,000 people, mostly students, fell ill in suspected food poisoning outbreaks.
• The incidents are linked to President Prabowo Subianto’s Free Nutritious Meals program (MBG).
• Outbreaks were reported between Tuesday and Thursday in East Java, Central Java, West Sumatra, Aceh, and South Sulawesi.
• The program’s rapid expansion faces renewed scrutiny over food safety, with previous incidents and corruption allegations.
• Approximately 1,950 students, teachers, and pupils were affected.