37 Victims of MBG Food Poisoning in East Jakarta Still Under Hospital Care

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - As many as 37 victims of food poisoning from the Free Nutritious Food (MBG) programme at primary schools in East Jakarta are still undergoing treatment at several hospitals as of Wednesday (8/4/2026).

The Head of the Jakarta Health Department (Kadinkes) DKI Jakarta, Ani Ruspitawati, revealed that the conditions of these dozens of victims are now in the recovery phase, although they have not yet been allowed to return home.

“Today, only 37 people are being treated, down from the previous total of 104. All 104 accessed hospitals. Of those 104, not all required inpatient care; some came and were allowed to go home. Yesterday, there were still around 60, and as of this morning at 08.00 WIB, only 37 remain,” Ani told reporters at the DKI Jakarta City Hall in Central Jakarta on Wednesday.

The largest number are being treated at RS Harum with 19 patients, followed by RSKD Duren Sawit with seven patients, and RS Islam Pondok Kopi with six patients.

“Then at RS UIN Syarif Hidayatullah, RS Polri, RS Budhi Asih, RS Hermina Jatinegara, and RSUD Tarakan, each with one,” Ani said.

Ani explained that the recovery response for each victim varies, especially since the majority of patients are children.

Hospital authorities are also ensuring that all clinical symptoms have completely disappeared before discharging patients.

“So we wait until they are stable, truly healthy, no longer feverish, no more vomiting, no more diarrhoea, all complaints gone before they go home,” she said.

Regarding the exact cause of the poisoning, the DKI Jakarta Health Department is still awaiting laboratory test results.

However, based on preliminary evaluation, the poisoning is suspected to have been triggered by a considerable time gap between the food being cooked and distributed.

“Because if you look at the percentage of victims, most are those who came in the afternoon. That’s the preliminary analysis,” she explained.

“We gather everything, look at the field conditions including interviews with the staff, the owners, and the victims. Everything will then be combined with the laboratory results, and only then will there be a complete report,” Ani said.

On the other hand, Ani emphasised that the MBG programme is a central government initiative, so the role of the DKI Jakarta Health Department is more focused on guidance and supervision.