BPOM Strengthens Food Safety Oversight in Free Nutritious Meal Programme

Surabaya (ANTARA) - The Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) is continuously strengthening food safety oversight in the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) Programme through supervision of raw materials, processing, and education for organisers to ensure the food served is safe for consumption. “The regulation clearly states that BPOM is tasked with being the supervisor, starting from raw materials, then the processing, including our duty to provide education,” said BPOM Head Taruna Ikrar at the University of Surabaya (Ubaya) on Monday. Taruna explained that BPOM has the authority to oversee all processed food used in the MBG programme, from raw materials to ready-to-eat meals. “Basic food, for example, is rice that is cooked. Once cooked, it is processed. But if fruits are cut up and about to be fried, that already falls under processed food. This means everything eaten by the children is classified as processed,” he said. In addition to supervising processed food, BPOM also carries out guidance and education functions regarding the implementation of hygiene and sanitation in MBG provider kitchens. Hygiene and sanitation certification is issued by the Health Service (Dinkes) or local government according to their authority. BPOM has also prepared tracing and mitigation steps should suspected food poisoning incidents occur during the programme’s implementation. “Including how we trace the sequence of the source of poisoning, that is the main task and function of the Food and Drug Agency,” Taruna stated. According to him, MBG supervision is being carried out with available resources while awaiting additional budget support from the central government. “Up to this moment, we are only using the existing budget within the Food and Drug Agency; we have not yet received self-managed funds. But whether there is money or not, the Food and Drug Agency is determined to continue safeguarding the implementation of MBG,” he said. He mentioned that the additional budget previously planned to support MBG supervision is still being processed at the Ministry of Finance. “We were to receive an additional budget of Rp700 billion, which was then reduced to Rp675 billion. We have signed for the self-managed funds, but in reality, because there are processes that need to be completed, it has been pulled back to the Minister of Finance,” he said. Nevertheless, BPOM ensures that coordination with the Health Service and various stakeholders continues to support the safe and standardised implementation of MBG. “We are also aware that it is not yet optimal, but we are striving as much as possible according to our capability and the main tasks and functions of the Food and Drug Agency,” he said.