Free meal program in Indonesia leaves thousands with food poisoning

The ambitious program by the Indonesian government to offer free meals and combat malnutrition in the country has caused nearly half of the food poisoning cases recorded in 2025, a member of the Executive branch reported this Wednesday (12). Stay informed about the news that matters to you! Thousands of people have fallen ill since the launch of the plan promoted by President Prabowo Subianto, which began operations in January and is still ongoing. Dadan Hindayana, director of the BGN agency that oversees the program, explained in Parliament that more than 11,000 people suffered poisoning across the country since the program was launched, including over 600 who were hospitalized. Out of the 441 food poisoning cases recorded, "the free meal program accounts for 211 incidents, or 48% of the cases," he declared. Half of them are associated with E. coli contamination, he added. Currently, more ...