BGN Head: Students Can Suggest Menus for MBG Programme

Bogor Regency (ANTARA) - The Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Dadan Hindayana, stated that students receiving the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme can propose food menus according to their preferences through Nutrition Fulfilment Service Units (SPPG).

“They will be accommodated by the SPPG that distributes them. Usually, they will write down what they want, and the SPPG side is obliged to ask according to what they want,” said Dadan after inaugurating the SPPG in Citaringgul, Babakan Madang Subdistrict, Bogor Regency, West Java, on Monday.

“Indeed, we will check how many people do not like rice, and it will be replaced with other menus,” he said.

He stated that the SPPG will also conduct data collection regarding students’ preferences for the quality of the food served.

“The SPPG will collect the children’s aspirations, what might be checked, how many people find the rice mushy, how many find the rice hard,” said Dadan.

In addition, BGN will also map students’ preferences for the type of rice used in the programme.

“What percentage of children like parboiled rice, so that the SPPG side knows,” he said.

Dadan assessed that students’ enthusiasm for the MBG programme is quite high. In fact, there are students who have started to like vegetables after routinely participating in the programme.

“Even some who did not like vegetables now like them, I think this is a good trend,” he said.

He revealed that there are currently 28,390 SPPGs throughout Indonesia that have served around 62 million MBG programme beneficiaries.

“Alhamdulillah, today we are inaugurating the SPPG in Citaringgul and the 14th SPPG in Babakan Madang Subdistrict,” said Dadan.

On that occasion, Dadan also inspected the food distribution from the SPPG to schools. He mentioned that food distribution is temporarily carried out using vehicles up to a certain point before being continued using carts, as the distance is deemed not too far.