Prabowo Says MBG Food Poisoning a Major Issue, Will Summon Nutrition Agency Chief
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JAKARTA, investortrust.id — President Prabowo Subianto has declared that the food poisoning incident linked to the government’s Free Nutritious Meals program, or MBG, is a major issue that must be resolved quickly. He said the government will take firm steps to address the problem and ensure the program remains on track.
Speaking at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base in Jakarta on Saturday, Sept 27, 2025, after returning from a four-nation trip that included a speech at the United Nations General Assembly, Prabowo said he has monitored developments abroad and will summon the head of the National Nutrition Agency, Dadan Hindayana, along with related officials to discuss solutions.
“I have monitored these developments. After this, I will summon the head of the National Nutrition Agency with several of our officials, we will discuss this. This is a major issue, so of course there have been shortcomings from the beginning. But I am confident that we will resolve this properly,” Prabowo said.
The president cautioned against politicizing the incident, stressing that the MBG program has a noble purpose of improving the quality of Indonesia’s human resources. He reminded the public that many children come from families that struggle to provide proper meals.
“We must be vigilant, do not politicize this. The purpose of free nutritious meals is for our children who often struggle to eat. Perhaps we eat well, but they only eat rice with salt,” he said.
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Prabowo acknowledged challenges in feeding millions of students but emphasized that the government is working hard to overcome them. “To feed so many people, of course there will be obstacles and difficulties. We must overcome them,” he said.
Earlier, Presidential Chief of Staff M Qodari underlined the urgency of strict measures to prevent food poisoning cases in the MBG program. He noted that incidents reported at nutrition service units serve as a serious warning for tighter discipline and stronger adherence to standards.
Qodari explained that several government bodies, including the National Nutrition Agency, the Ministry of Health, and the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM), recorded relatively similar numbers of food poisoning cases.
“The fact that the same problem is recorded by three institutions, even with the National Nutrition Agency itself reporting statistics around 5,000 cases, shows consistency. Differences between institutions should not be seen as contradictions. Instead, it confirms the problem is real and requires immediate handling,” Qodari said on Monday, Sept 22, 2025.
He added that most poisoning incidents were caused by poor food hygiene, improper temperatures, errors in food preparation, cross-contamination by handlers, and in some cases, allergic reactions among recipients.