Deputy Mayor of Solo Monitors Two Nutrition Service Centres in Response to Public Complaints About Free Meal Programme
The Deputy Mayor of Solo, Astrid Widayani, inspected the kitchens of the Nutrition Fulfilment Service Unit (SPPG) at two locations in Solo on Thursday, 12 March 2026. The inspection was conducted after the municipal government received several public complaints concerning menu variety and food quality in the free nutritious meal (MBG) programme.
The two kitchens inspected were located in Gandekan, Jebres District, and Karangasem, Laweyan District. Public complaints had previously been submitted through direct messages and social media comments tagging Astrid’s Instagram account.
“This is a follow-up from previous kitchen monitoring and from public complaints, including programme beneficiaries. From the local government’s perspective, particularly regarding oversight, we want to ensure conditions on the ground directly,” Astrid said during the SPPG inspection.
During the visit, Astrid and her team reviewed the kitchen’s operational processes, from food preparation to processing and readiness for distribution to beneficiaries. She also held discussions with SPPG heads and kitchen managers regarding production management, menu and nutrition planning, and financial management.
According to Astrid, the management of the nutrition programme kitchens must align three main aspects: production, budget management, and menu and nutrition planning.
“In my view, the three components of SPPG kitchens are production, finance, and menu and nutrition planning. All three must be synchronised. We must not allow menu variety to diminish due to budget constraints,” she said.
From preliminary monitoring results, she stated that no serious issues were found in kitchen management. However, the government provided several improvement recommendations, particularly regarding menu variety so that the food served appeals more to children.
Astrid emphasised that menus for students, particularly at primary school level, must consider nutritional composition alongside children’s preferences to prevent food waste.
“What is important is that the menu is safe in terms of ingredients, well-prepared, and includes a combination of animal protein, plant protein, and fruit. Menu variety is also important so children will eat and food is not wasted,” she said.
During Ramadan, the government also reminded kitchen managers to maintain proper portion control, with both larger and smaller portions tailored to beneficiaries’ needs.
Astrid stated that SPPG kitchen monitoring will be conducted regularly to ensure the service operates well. This step is also an effort to prevent issues following similar complaints that have emerged in several areas across Central Java.
“We want to prevent problems from the start. That is why today we visited and directly observed kitchen conditions. In Solo, the focus is ensuring the production process runs properly and communication between all parties is maintained,” she said.