MBG Kitchen Heads Now Required to Start Work at 2 AM, Attendance Checked via Zoom
The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) has tightened supervision of the operational activities of its Nutrition Service Fulfilment Units (SPPG), or Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) kitchens. One of the new rules requires kitchen heads to be on site during operational hours, including in the early hours of the morning.
Coordinating Minister for Food Zulkifli Hasan (Zulhas) said the working hours were introduced because food preparation for students begins very early in the day. The policy is also accompanied by attendance checks via Zoom. The BGN wants to ensure that kitchen heads and relevant staff are genuinely on site when food is being prepared.
“So the kitchen operational hours start at 2 AM. In eastern Indonesia it may be 12 or 1 AM, a one-hour difference. So working hours run from 2 AM to 8 AM. Previously, SPPG heads were not present on site. Now they are required to be there from 2 AM to 8 AM, and attendance is checked via Zoom,” Zulhas said at a press conference at his office in Jakarta on Wednesday (26/8/2026).
Zulhas said the presence of the SPPG head is important because that position is responsible for ensuring all food processing procedures are carried out correctly. The tightening of working hours comes amid government efforts to improve the governance of the MBG programme, including preventing cases of food-related illness.
He said BGN officials have even been checking the attendance of SPPG heads in the early hours. According to him, the measure is necessary to ensure that problems in food management do not lead to further poisoning cases.
“So that there are no more mistakes in the cooking management at BGN that result in poisoning. This is not a small matter; poisoning involves Indonesian children and must not happen. So at 2 AM they are already working, or at least checking in via Zoom to the SPPG,” he said.
Meanwhile, BGN Head Sudaryono explained that food safety problems at several MBG kitchens were linked to the implementation of standard operating procedures (SOPs). He said there were cases where the SPPG head was not on site, meaning supervision of the cooking process was not optimal.
“From many cases of food poisoning, almost all of them occurred because SOPs were not implemented. Whether it was storage SOPs, hand hygiene requirements, the use of gloves, and so on. Some findings even showed that the SPPG head was not on site. That person is the leader in the kitchen, ensuring that SOPs are followed,” Sudaryono explained after the press conference.
BGN also stressed that the position of SPPG head carries disciplinary consequences because some managers have civil servant status (PPPK). Sudaryono said kitchen heads who fail to meet attendance obligations can be sanctioned.
“If you are a teacher at a school with PPPK status, you must be present during teaching hours. There is no obligation to be present at night. If you are absent from teaching hours, from your office, for more than 10 consecutive days without explanation, in the military that would be called desertion. The threat is dishonourable dismissal,” he explained.
For this reason, BGN has set kitchen operational hours as the working hours for SPPG heads. Kitchen heads are therefore required to be on site to supervise the food production process.
“We have issued a rule that the working hours for PPPK civil servants serving as SPPG kitchen heads are the kitchen operational hours. If they are not there, then what is the point of having them there?” he said.
In addition to SPPG heads, BGN has also established a chain of command for when the main officials in the kitchen are unable to attend. If the kitchen head cannot be present, supervision is transferred to a supervisor or nutritionist. If the nutrition supervisor is also unavailable, the duty passes to the accountant.
However, if all three are absent at the same time, the kitchen is not permitted to operate. “If these three leaders cannot be present during operational hours, then the kitchen must not operate,” he stressed.
The measure is part of an effort to bring order to the tens of thousands of MBG kitchens currently operating. BGN has recorded 27,485 SPPGs, which are now being screened and verified to ensure that kitchens, beneficiaries, and governance comply with regulations.