Workers stack packaged lunches for students of SMA Muhammadiyah 2 high school in Sidoarjo, East Java, on Jan 6, 2025, the first day of the free nutritious meals program. - Photo: Antara
JAKARTA: The Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) has expressed concern over its minimal role in overseeing the government’s free meal initiative, which, despite running for only four months, has been plagued by more than a dozen food poisoning cases.
During a hearing with the House of Representatives on Thursday (May 15), BPOM Chair Taruna Ikrar revealed that, despite signing an agreement with the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) to oversee 13 key aspects of the free meal program, the agency has not been involved in all of them.
“For example, we were never asked to check whether the free meal kitchens were built to standard and operating in accordance with food safety protocols, even though we have the resources, personnel and expertise to monitor food production,” he said, as quoted by Kompas.com.
He added that so far, the BGN has only requested the BPOM’s assistance in formulating training modules for free meal kitchen staff and in responding to food poisoning incidents.
Taruna expressed hope that moving forward, the BGN would expand the BPOM’s role in the free meal program, particularly in critical areas such as overseeing food safety protocols in kitchens and inspecting raw ingredients.
“We can’t simply deploy our team to inspect free meal kitchens when the BGN has not requested us to do so,” he said.
Taruna reported that, since the launch of the free meal program in January, the BPOM has recorded 17 food poisoning incidents across 10 provinces.
While he did not specify the number of students affected, various news reports indicate that at least 1,500 students have been impacted by these incidents.
Taruna explained that most food poisoning incidents were caused by bacterial contamination at various stages of meal preparation.
“We identified contamination in raw ingredients as well as bacterial growth due to improper storage temperatures and improper cooking practices,” he said as quoted by Antara.
“Some food poisoning incidents were caused by meals that were cooked too early and not distributed on time, while others resulted from a lack of hygiene and sanitation in the kitchen,” he added.
He stated that the BGN needs to improve several aspects of the free meal preparation process, including enhancing the implementation of good manufacturing practices in the kitchens and tightening safety checks for raw ingredients.
The BGN also needs to ensure the comprehensive collection of epidemiological data in the event of food poisoning incidents, which would help identify trends, trace the source of contamination and prevent future outbreaks.
The BGN has come under widespread scrutiny following recurring food poisoning incidents linked to the free meal programme, with at least two regions declaring health emergencies after hundreds of students fell ill from consuming government-provided meals.
Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Dadan Hindayana, has pledged to strengthen food safety measures across more than 1,000 kitchens involved in the government's free nutritious meals programme.
"We will tighten organoleptic testing of the meals and conduct a food safety refresher course every three months for all kitchen staff," he said earlier this month.
An organoleptic test, also known as a sensory test, assesses the sensory qualities of a product, like food, using human senses.
It evaluates attributes such as taste, color, aroma and texture.
"We are also collaborating with the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency [BPOM], regional health agencies and experts from the food and beverage industry to strengthen food safety standards," he added.
As of May, the government has deployed over 52,000 workers to operate 1,335 kitchens preparing meals for more than 3.8 million students nationwide. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
