Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said the government will continue to improve the process of implementing free nutritious meals (MBG). After cases of MBG poisoning were rampant in various schools, Budi revealed that the government now requires MBG kitchens or Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units (SPPG) to have 3 certificates.
"This will be the minimum standard of every SPPG," Budi said in a press conference at the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) office, Thursday (2/10/2025).
The three certificates cover hygiene, food safety and halal aspects. As the MBG supervisor, the MOH will be responsible for the hygiene certification or Certificate of Good Hygiene Sanitation (SLHS).
"As of today, the number is 100 SPPGs that have received the certificate. We will review it every day," he said.
Together with the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), the Ministry of Health targets all SPPGs to obtain SLHS within one month.
The next certification that SPPG must have is Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP). Budi said that this certification is a standard in the process of serving food and measuring nutrition. Budi said that the government is still preparing the mechanism.
Meanwhile, halal certification is entrusted to the Halal Product Guarantee Agency or BPJPH.
Suar visited three pilot SPPGs in Jakarta to see how they were implementing this instruction. Palmerah SPPG in West Jakarta was one of them.
This SPPG is a pilot SPPG because it has been established and operating since the beginning of the MBG program. Palmerah SPPG serves 20 delivery points, with details of 12 schools and 8 posyandu within a radius of 6 kilometers from the SPPG location. The number of ompreng that they produce and distribute every day reaches 3,559 meal portions.
Head of Palmerah SPPG Saiful Arifin confirmed that there was an instruction from the government regarding certification. In fact, according to him, SPPG has received this information since last week.
"At that time we had an online coordination meeting with BGN. We got the instruction," he said on Friday (03/10/2023).
During the online meeting, Saiful said there were more than three certifications that SPPG had to take care of. "There are seven certifications in total," he said while showing notes about the number and names of certificates that SPPG must take care of. These certifications include SLHS, HACCP, halal, NKV, ISO45001, ISO22000, and HSP.
Currently, Palmerah SPPG has only obtained one certificate, namely SLHS. "That one has been completed, just waiting for it to be published," he said. According to him, there are at least four assessment components that must be met by each SPPG to be able to obtain SLHS certification.
The first is the employee health test. Saiful said that all employees of SPPG Palmerah had undergone health tests and were declared healthy. " Basic health tests, such as blood pressure, cholesterol," he said. The health test was conducted directly by the Health Office.
The second is the food handler certificate for SPPG employees. This certificate is obtained by employees after completing the competency test held by BGN. Saiful said that all employees in each SPPG must have this certificate. Because Palmerah SPPG is a pilot SPPG, all employees have had this certificate since the beginning.
The third is laboratory testing. This test is conducted by the Labkesda. Saiful said, the laboratory test includes checking the cleanliness of the water used in the cooking process and washing the ompreng. Various raw materials to ready-to-eat food are also components assessed in the laboratory test. "There is a list of samples from Labkesda. We will send them according to that list," he said.
The fourth is the Environmental Health Inspection or IKL. This component is an assessment of the feasibility of the kitchen to run the MBG program. One of the things checked in the IKL, Saiful said, is the condition of the drainage channels. "It must not be flooded like the sewer on the side of the road," he said. If it is flooded, the SPPG will not pass the IKL.
Saiful said the other six certificates for Palmerah SPPG were still being processed. Because the instruction only came a week earlier, Saiful admitted that he did not know the exact mechanism and flow of the submission.
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The same thing happened at the Police SPPG in Pejaten, South Jakarta, which is a pilot SPPG. This SPPG, which serves 10 distribution points, only has one certificate, namely halal certification from BPJPH.
Head of SPPG Polri Iqbal Salim said SPPG Polri is currently undergoing a certification process to obtain SLHS. Iqbal added, then SPPG Polri will immediately process other certifications in stages. "To ensure that SPPG Polri Pejaten meets the operational standards set by BGN," said Iqbal.
In Koja, North Jakarta, the Koja SPPG, which is a pilot SPPG, was not willing to provide information regarding this certification instruction. The head of Koja SPPG, Rena Apriliana Widorekno, was not at the SPPG on Friday (03/10/2025) afternoon.
"I have no authority on this matter. And I also don't know how many certificates we have obtained," said Sitepu, Field Assistant of SPPG Koja. SPPG Koja serves 7 delivery points with a production of 3800 ompreng every day.
Better late than never
Executive Director of the Center of Reform on Economics (CORE) Mohammad Faisal believes that this certification policy should have been carried out before the MBG program began. The government must ensure that the food distributed meets nutritional standards and is safe. "So I think this is too late," he said.
Nevertheless, Faisal believes that this certification step is important as an effort to evaluate the program while ensuring the safety of MBG beneficiaries. According to him, the certification step must be carried out in stages and not rushed. This is important considering the growing number of MBG poisoning victims.
BGN data shows that until October 1, 2025, the number of MBG poisoning victims reached 6,517 people. A total of 1,307 victims were in Sumatra. 4207 victims were in Java and 1,003 victims were scattered in Eastern Indonesia. Meanwhile, data compiled by the Indonesian Education Monitoring Network (JPPI) revealed a much larger number of victims. As of September 30, 2025, JPPI recorded 9,286 victims spread across 22 provinces.
"The government should temporarily stop the operation of SPPGs that do not have certificates. Don't let them run but only have two certificates," said Faisal.
The large number of MBG poisoning cases, according to Faisal, is due to the government's approach of only focusing on chasing targets in a short period of time. This has implications for neglecting safety and security aspects.
"This is the consequence of a populist program that is carried out in a hurry to achieve quantity targets. The target has political motivation, because it is the President's number one program. In fact, because it is the flagship program, it should be even more careful," said Faisal.
Therefore, according to Faisal, the government must closely monitor the certification process. Its implementation must be carried out by involving all relevant elements, especially parents. The credibility of the certification body must also be ensured so that it is not susceptible to political intervention.
"If necessary, involve an independent institution," said Faisal.
Minister Budi said the Ministry of Health and BGN are designing an integrated reporting and monitoring system to monitor MBG. The system, said Budi, will be similar to the reporting of corona virus disease or Covid-19 cases during the pandemic several years ago. Later, he said, reports will be announced in real time and routinely. "For example, there are daily or weekly or monthly updates like we used to do during Covid, we can do it," said Budi Gunadi.
Budi added that BGN will play a role in conducting internal supervision regularly in the implementation of MBG. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Home Affairs will conduct external supervision once a week.
Head of BGN Dadan Hindayana revealed that the government will continue the MBG program despite the increasing number of poisonings and the heavy criticism coming from the public. Currently, said Dadan, BGN will suspend the operation of the SPPG that caused the poisoning.
"I was ordered by the President to accelerate. I will continue to implement it unless the President gives other orders," he said at a press conference at the Ministry of Health office.
