More than 1,000 Indonesians have fallen ill due to school meals amid additional food poisoning outbreaks.
Authorities said that over 1,000 students in West Java, Indonesia, experienced food poisoning this week due to school lunches, marking the latest incident in a string of outbreaks and a further setback for the president’s multi-billion-dollar free meals initiative.
The mass poisoning was recorded in four regions of West Java province, as stated by Governor Dedi Mulyadi to Reuters on Thursday, coinciding with non-governmental groups urging the suspension of the program owing to health concerns.
The recent incidents involve the poisoning of 800 pupils who had school lunches last week in the provinces of West Java and Central Sulawesi, provided through President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship free nutritious meals initiative.
Concerns have emerged about the standards and management of the program, which has swiftly expanded to serve over 20 million beneficiaries, with an ambitious objective of providing sustenance to 83 million of Indonesia’s 280 million populace by the conclusion of the year. The program’s budget of 171 trillion rupiah ($10.22 billion) will be doubled next year.
Governor Mulyadi reported that around 470 students became ill in West Bandung on Monday after consuming the complimentary lunches, with three further outbreaks occurring on Wednesday in the Sukabumi district, impacting at least 580 youngsters.
“We must assess those administering the program…” Mulyadi emphasised the paramount importance of addressing the students’ trauma following their consumption of the meal, noting that local hospitals in West Bandung were inundated with ill pupils.
Prabowo’s office did not promptly reply to a request for commentary regarding the recent instances. Dadan Hindayana, the director of The National Nutrition Agency responsible for the free meals program, announced the suspension of kitchens involved in poisoning incidents.
INCREASE IN INCIDENTS
Kompas TV, a local station, aired images from a sports hall in West Bandung repurposed as an improvised treatment clinic, with numerous ill students on fold-out beds, while others lay on the floor in distress.
Additional photographs depicted students receiving treatment outside hospital facilities, with ambulances arriving and departing.
Prior to this week’s incident, a minimum of 6,452 children across the nation have experienced food poisoning from the program since its inception in January, as reported by the think tank Network for Education Watch.
Governor Mulyadi stated that kitchens were assigned the responsibility of feeding an excessive number of children and were situated at considerable distances from the schools, necessitating early preparation, occasionally commencing the night prior to lunch service.
“The food was promptly placed on the tray while still warm, and the tray was sealed, resulting in spoilage and staleness,” he stated.
The local government has declared a health emergency in the West Bandung region due to widespread food poisoning, enabling the province government to allocate funds to address the situation, Mulyadi stated.