Over 800 Indonesian Students Fall Ill in Mass Food Poisoning Linked to Free School Meals

More than 800 students across Indonesia have fallen sick this week in two separate mass food poisoning incidents tied to the government’s free school meals programme, officials confirmed on Friday.

The worst outbreak struck Garut, West Java, where 569 students from five schools were hit with nausea and vomiting after eating chicken-and-rice meals on Wednesday.

About 30 children required hospitalisation, while hundreds more were treated at home. As of Friday, 10 students remained in hospital, according to Garut regional secretary Nurdin Yana.

In response, local authorities pledged stricter oversight of food suppliers and announced a temporary switch to simpler, safer menu items such as bread, milk, boiled eggs, and fruit. Officials, however, stressed that the feeding programme would not be suspended.

A second outbreak occurred the same day in Central Sulawesi’s Banggai Islands, where 277 students fell ill. The National Nutrition Agency, which manages the initiative, confirmed that meal distribution in the area has been temporarily halted pending review.

Government spokesperson Prasetyo Hadi issued an apology on Friday, acknowledging failures in food safety. “These cases are, of course, not what we had hoped for or intentional,” he said.

The free meals initiative, a flagship policy of President Prabowo Subianto launched in January, has already faced criticism over repeated lapses.

According to the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance, more than 4,000 cases of food poisoning linked to the programme have been reported this year, raising questions about its safety standards and quality control.

Despite mounting concerns, the government remains committed to expanding the scheme. Currently reaching 20 million recipients, the programme aims to serve 83 million by year’s end, with its budget of 171 trillion rupiah ($10.3 billion) projected to double in 2026.