80 Junior High Students in Makale Toraja Suspected of Food Poisoning from Free Nutritious Meal Program; Task Force Investigating

A total of 80 students from SMP Negeri 1 and SMP Negeri 2 Makale, in the Tana Toraja Regency, South Sulawesi, were rushed to hospital on Thursday (3/9) after allegedly suffering food poisoning from the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) distributed the previous day.

One parent of an affected student noted that the MBG menu provided to students on Wednesday (2/9) included rice, chicken, vegetables, tempeh, and melon. However, students reportedly began feeling unwell on Wednesday evening.

“They started feeling ill last night, and when they went to school, it turned out many other students were also sick,” said Jum (4ly), one of the parents.

The Regional Secretary of Tana Toraja and Chairman of the MBG Task Force, Rudy Andi Lolo, confirmed that dozens of students are being treated but declined to conclude the cause, including the suspicion of food poisoning from the MBG programme.

He stated that the suspected cause of the poisoning must still be proven through further investigation. “There are currently 80 students affected, being treated in three hospitals. However, we cannot yet declare this as food poisoning,” Rudy told CNNIndonesia.com on Thursday.

According to Rudy, the food from today’s MBG programme menu had not even been distributed to the students when the complaints emerged. Therefore, his office cannot yet conclude a connection between the students’ condition and the MBG menu.

“This means the food has not been distributed. They have not eaten today,” he said.

Rudy stated that he has instructed officials to collect food remains and vomit from the students for further examination and analysis. Such testing is necessary to determine the exact cause of the health issues experienced by the students.

“So, we are not yet saying that this is an immediate case of food poisoning. It is possible they ate other food or something at home,” he explained.

Rudy explained that several possibilities are still being investigated, including other foods consumed by students before arriving at school, as well as the water they drank.

“All of this is still speculative. That is why I have ordered the collection of food remains and vomit for us to study further,” he said.

Rudy emphasised that food poisoning cannot be concluded immediately based solely on the emergence of health complaints. If the MBG menu from the previous day is suspected to be the trigger, Rudy noted there was a time gap of more than 12 hours before the students experienced health impacts.

“So, to call it food poisoning, it has been more than 12 hours,” he concluded.