September 17, 2026 | 09:14 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian Food and Drug Authority (BPOM) has proposed additional funding to oversee the Free Nutritious Meal Program (MBG) during budget discussions with the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission IX on Thursday, September 17, 2026. BPOM Head Taruna Ikrar stated that in the budget discussions, the authority initially proposed a total budget of Rp4.7 trillion.
Of that amount, more than Rp1 trillion was specifically allocated to supervise the MBG program. However, the DPR only approved Rp509 billion. "So the conclusion is that the Rp509 billion provided for BPOM's oversight is the result of our proposal, but it was not fully approved," said Taruna after a working meeting with Commission IX.
Taruna said the budget for BPOM's duties and functions, which usually reached Rp1.6 trillion, was approved at only Rp115 billion. Despite this, BPOM reaffirmed its commitment to oversee the MBG program. "And in that specific context, Badan POM is committed to thoroughly overseeing the free nutritious food program regardless of what happens," said Taruna.
According to Taruna, the MBG will be supervised in accordance with Presidential Regulation Number 115 on the Governance of Free Nutritious Meals. The oversight includes monitoring raw materials, education, management, distribution, and mitigation in the event of extraordinary incidents such as poisoning.
BPOM calculated the need to test 41,150 samples from approximately 27,000 nutritious food fulfillment service units (SPPG) to detect potential vulnerable areas.
Meanwhile, head of the Nutrition National Agency (BGN), Sudaryono, welcomed BPOM's involvement in overseeing the MBG program. The Gerindra Party politician said their institution had coordinated with the BPOM to align oversight measures and prioritize preventive aspects.
"The goal is to prioritize the preventive nature of the nutritious food program we provide. Because indeed, prevention is better than cure," Sudaryono said.
Sudaryono explained that BGN continues to improve the MBG kitchens’ governance system. They have closed around 1,200 kitchens that do not meet the Hygiene and Sanitation Eligibility Certificate (SLHS) and implemented stricter standard operating procedures (SOP).
Additionally, he mentioned that BGN also focuses on reducing the use of raw materials, particularly animal protein, as it is considered the most likely to cause health disturbances. Currently, BGN is developing a marketplace system to ensure the quality of raw materials and is continuously evaluating thousands of provider kitchens.
"It means that out of the kitchens that have met the standards, around 13,000-something, the rest, about half, we are inspecting. If they do not meet the requirements, we have suspended them," said Sudaryono.
During the meeting, DPR Commission IX approved BPOM’s budget ceiling in the 2027 Fiscal Year at Rp1.939 trillion. In addition to approving the indicative ceiling, the House also approved and requested BPOM to propose additional funding for 2027 amounting to Rp2.465 trillion.
This additional funding is intended to strengthen the implementation of monitoring duties and functions of drugs and food that were not accommodated in the initial ceiling. Furthermore, DPR Commission IX and BPOM agreed to coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas regarding the transfer of a portion of the budget amounting to Rp509.50 billion.
The budget initially allocated to support the MBG will be reallocated to support BPOM’s operational duties of monitoring drugs and food.
Read: MBG Watch Hails Court Ruling Limiting President's Power to Alter Budget
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