More than 1,700 people fell ill in Indonesia after free school meals
In Indonesia, more than 1,700 people fell ill in a week due to cases of food poisoning linked to a state free meal program. At a high school in the city of Lasem in Central Java, 777 people fell ill after a free lunch — 752 students and 25 teachers, Daily Maverick reports.
Case in Lasem
According to school principal Juhartutik, students and teachers complained of diarrhea and vomiting after eating government-provided lunches on Wednesday. The schoolchildren were served grilled chicken.
Before the food was distributed, a taster noticed that some of the chicken was slimy. According to the principal, those portions were set aside. The kitchen operator said the food had been prepared at 3 a.m. and consumed at noon. Most of those affected were sent home, while local doctor Joko Paryanto reported that 15 students and teachers had been hospitalized.
Other cases
On Tuesday, 664 students fell ill in the city of Sidoarjo in East Java, local official Gerawati Yuwantina said. In two other cases on Wednesday, 49 people were poisoned in the city of Nganjuk in East Java, while 237 people were affected in the Agam region of West Sumatra.
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Parliament member Charles Honoris, citing data from local health authorities, said these cases were not isolated and called the situation a systemic failure. According to him, food poisoning had affected 50,000 people as of September 1.
The National Nutrition Agency, which oversees the $12.94 billion program, did not immediately comment on the new cases. On Wednesday, the agency suspended the operation of a kitchen linked to the poisoning in Sidoarjo. The report notes that food poisoning is often caused by improper food storage and delayed delivery of prepared meals.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto launched the free meal program last year to improve nutrition for tens of millions of children. The program has also been accompanied by corruption allegations, leadership changes, and a series of mass food poisoning cases.
