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Prabowo’s free meal plan major cause of food poisoning cases in Indonesia, government says
The National Nutrition Agency said the programme to combat malnutrition has been linked to 48 per cent of food poisoning cases in Indonesia
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The Indonesian government’s hallmark programme to provide free meals to combat malnutrition in the country has contributed to nearly half of food poisoning cases this year, an official told lawmakers on Wednesday.
Thousands of people have been sick since the much-hyped billion-dollar scheme of President Prabowo Subianto was launched in January, with critics calling for its suspension over hygiene concerns.
Dadan Hindayana, head of the national BGN agency which oversees the programme, told parliament that more than 11,000 people suffered from food poisoning across Indonesia since the launch, including more than 600 who were hospitalised.
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Out of 441 recorded incidents of food poisoning, “the free meal programme accounts for 211 incidents, or 48 per cent of these cases”, he said.
Each incident could involve numerous people affected, sometimes in the thousands.
Last month more than 660 pupils from two schools in central Java experienced diarrhoea, nausea, and dizziness after they ate meals provided by the government.
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