Zulhas Gives Indonesia’s Free Meals Program Two Months to Fix Food Poisoning Problems
Translated from Indonesian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.
At a glance
- Coordinating Food Minister Zulkifli Hasan gave the Free Nutritious Meals program two months to address food safety and distribution failures.
- He said delays between cooking and delivery can make meals unsafe and cause poisoning.
- Hasan called for strict sanctions, including replacing negligent Meal Fulfillment Service Units and other responsible personnel.
Indonesia’s Free Nutritious Meals program has two months to fix problems that have contributed to food poisoning cases, Coordinating Food Minister Zulkifli Hasan said in Bandar Lampung on Saturday.
The Free Nutritious Meals program, we will give it two months. We will resolve it.
Hasan said the issue does not necessarily lie with the kitchens themselves. Insufficient discipline after cooking, including delays in delivery and improper placement of meals, can also create risks.
If meals are cooked, they should be sent at 6 a.m. Maybe someone wakes up late and sends them at 11. That causes poisoning.
“If meals are cooked, they should be sent at 6 a.m. Maybe someone wakes up late and sends them at 11. That causes poisoning,” Hasan said. He described such failures as human error, whether caused by negligence or deliberately, and called for firm action with no tolerance.
It is purely human error, which could also be negligence or deliberate. I request firm action. There must be no tolerance.
Hasan said the government had inspected kitchens and generally found them to be in good condition. The program still requires tighter control over distribution because it serves 60 million people, he said. He called for negligent Meal Fulfillment Service Units, known as SPPGs, and any other responsible parties to be replaced or sanctioned.
Replace them. The SPPG, whoever is involved, replace them.
Originally published by Republika in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.