October 15, 2025 | 10:11 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The stench of rotten eggs filled the classroom at Vocational High School (SMKN) 1 Cihampelas, West Bandung Regency, West Java, on Wednesday, September 24, 2025. The odor came from the meal containers distributed as part of the government’s free nutritious meal program. That day’s menu consisted of eggs, potatoes, and lotek—a mix of boiled vegetables topped with peanut sauce.
Farhan Indra—not his real name—said he noticed the foul smell as soon as he entered the classroom. The 11th grader went ahead and took his meal, but quickly lost his appetite when he saw the peanut sauce has turned slimy. “I felt nauseous and started vomiting half an hour after eating,” he told Tempo on Friday, October 10.
Teachers and classmates rushed the 16-year-old to the school’s health unit for first aid, then to a community health center two kilometers away. His condition did not improve, even after taking anti-nausea medication. He finally recovered after being hospitalized for a day at Cililin Regional General Hospital.
Farhan was among 121 students who fell ill in a mass food poisoning incident at SMKN 1 Cihampelas in late September 2025. The meal packages had been supplied by the Mekarmukti Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG) in Cihampelas subdistrict. The school’s administrative staff, Dadi Karmawan, said the vendor delivered about 1,400 meal portions daily.
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