DPR evaluates reports of maggots found in MBG meals in Bandung

Deputy Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, said the Technical Commission is currently conducting evaluation and tight oversight of the Makan Bergizi Gratis (MBG) programme following reports of unfit meals, including maggot findings in the Bandung Raya area. Dasco stated that complaints from parents about the quality of food during Ramadan have been received as important input for the legislature to be promptly addressed by the programme operators. He also said the DPR continues to monitor the ratio of complaints to the number of kitchens delivering benefits to ensure the programme’s effectiveness amid reports of rapel meals that are sour or rotten. The report of unfit MBG meals emerged after several parents in Bandung Regency found maggots in mangosteen and cassava flan that had gone bad. Wati, one of the parents at MI Al-Halim in Cangkuang, said she was shocked to find the food packages distributed on the third day of Ramadan contained spoiled fruit. “I was shocked there were maggots (in the mangosteen) and (the cassava) was already rotten. My child did not eat, only bread and milk were consumed,” said Wati. Similar complaints also came from parents of students at various levels in Bandung Regency. Some parents criticised meals that were far from nutritional standards, such as packages containing only one orange and two steamed sponge cakes, to packages of raw ingredients such as chicken and tempeh that burden parents to cook themselves. MBG is a national strategic policy aimed at increasing the nutritional intake of beneficiaries, but distribution and quality of raw materials on the ground have become a critical issue for the authorities.