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January 21, 2025 | 07:25 pm
Tempo.co, Jakarta - Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Spokesperson Philips J. Vermonte stated that the Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG) will evaluate the menu of the free nutritious meals (MBG) every 20 days. During each evaluation, the menu will be replaced with a new one.
"The menu is changed to help students understand that Indonesian food is diverse," said Philips to reporters after observing the program implementation at the state-inclusive school or SLB Negeri 5 Jakarta, Palmerah, West Jakarta, on Tuesday, January 21, 2025.
By the menu changes, Philips explained that the free nutritious meal program is more than just an eating event. It is a cultural moment aimed at introducing students to a variety of Indonesian foods. According to him, several components are supporting the free nutritious meal initiative. These components include inclusion and solidarity, which are reflected, among other things, in activities such as praying together before meals.
Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Dadan Hindayana, previously stated that his team would conduct surveys to know the most preferred menu options by students participating in the program. Nutritionists will analyze the results during the remainder of the program's first month. “The survey aims to identify favorite and less popular menu items. This will serve as a regular reference,” Dadan told Tempo on Monday, January 20, 2025.
Dadan explained that the menu variations for the free nutritious meal program are designed for one-month periods. At the end of each month, an evaluation will be conducted to determine the menu for the following month. He noted that nutritionists will guide this evaluation process. “This has already been implemented in Warungkiara, Sukabumi,” he said.
Since its launch on January 6, the national free nutritious meal program has been implemented in 31 provinces. A total of 238 Nutritious Meal Service Units (SPPG) are currently operational, serving over 650,000 beneficiaries. These beneficiaries include students from early childhood education (PAUD) to vocational schools (SMK) and special needs schools (SLB), pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and toddlers.
In the first phase, from January to April 2025, the government aims to have 932 free nutritious meal kitchens to serve at least 3 million beneficiaries. In the next phase, from April to August 2025, the target is to increase the number of SPPG locations to 2,000, serving up to 6 million beneficiaries. By the end of 2025, the government aims to have 5,000 free nutritious meal kitchens operational, serving more than 15 million beneficiaries across 514 regencies and cities throughout Indonesia.
Hammam Izzuddin contributed to the writing of this article.
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