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Government continues free meals program during Ramadan with processed food
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A student of state junior high school (SMPN) 1 Denpasar in Bali shows a variety of food received as part of the government free meals program on March 17, 2025. (Antara/Fikri Yusuf)
T
he government has insisted on resuming President Prabowo Subianto's flagship free nutritious meal program during the fasting month of Ramadan by making some adjustments to the menu including by providing ultra-processed foods for school children, drawing criticism from nutritionists.
In the first months of the program’s implementation since January, the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), which is responsible for the food distribution, incorporated what appeared to be healthy foods into the students’ lunch boxes, such as rice, protein sources like cooked chicken or fish, fruit and vegetables.
But since earlier this month, which marked the beginning of the fasting month for the majority of the country’s population, the BGN opted to go with ultra-processed foods that have a long shelf life, such as instant cereal, as well as packaged bread and milk.
The move has been highly criticized by nutritionists as such food and beverages have undergone extensive processing and contain added ingredients like preservatives, artificial colors and flavors, which have been linked to an increased risk of various chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.
“Providing packaged milk [for the free meals program] becomes ironic since it’s actually a glucose-based drink containing only 30 percent milk. [It’s also important to] note that 80 percent of Indonesians are actually lactose intolerant,” said Jakarta-based nutritionist and doctor Tan Shot Yen.
Read also: Indonesia launches ambitious free-meal program to combat stunting
Tan added that while it’s important to provide a menu that has a long shelf life, processed foods should not be an option considering Indonesia has many kinds of non-perishable foods such as otak-otak (fish cake) and lemper (steamed sticky rice with a beef or chicken filling).
