JAKARTA, The Kabar News—The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) has capped operating expenditure for kitchens serving the Free Meals (MBG) program at Rp3,000 (18 US cents) per beneficiary, while transferring responsibility for food-delivery vehicles to its private partners.

BGN introduced the revised financing rules to control spending across its Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units (SPPGs). The agency said the previous at-cost system lacked a maximum limit and could push expenditure beyond the state budget allocation.

“One of the adjustments concerns kitchen operating expenses, which the agency has now capped at Rp3,000 per beneficiary,” BGN spokesperson Tysa Novenny said in an official statement.

BGN calculates the allowance according to the actual number of beneficiaries served by each kitchen. The agency has also set food budgets of Rp13,000 for a small serving and Rp15,000 for a large serving.

“The agency is improving budget management through greater efficiency and stronger governance. Therefore, program financing remains aligned and accountable,” Tysa said.

The new arrangement also replaces a fixed facilities incentive of Rp6 million per operating day with a payment of Rp2,000 per beneficiary. In addition, BGN said it would link the payment to the availability and quality of services provided by each SPPG.

Under the current policy, partners must supply their distribution vehicles. BGN treats vehicles as partner-provided facilities alongside kitchen buildings, cooking equipment and eating utensils.

The agency said it no longer includes vehicles in operating expenditure. However, earlier BGN technical guidance listed vehicle rent and fuel among eligible operational components. The change has therefore raised questions among partners about the costs they must now absorb.

Dozens of MBG partners from East Priangan, West Java, met in Tasikmalaya on Nov. 4 to request a review of the policy. They argued that a uniform national ceiling may not reflect differences in fuel prices, distribution distances and local labor expenses.

Partner representative Ucu Supriatna said shifting from the fixed daily incentive to a beneficiary-based calculation could create a monthly deficit of up to Rp80 million for some kitchens. BGN has not independently confirmed that estimate.

“One impact on partners is that the program now requires them to cover vehicle operating costs that the previous budget calculation included,” Ucu said.

At least 68 kitchen operators attended the meeting, according to Fokus Jabar. The partners said they supported transparent spending but wanted BGN to consider different operating conditions across regions.

They also questioned the agency’s suspension policy. Ucu argued that BGN should assign responsibility for financial-reporting errors to the officials who handle the reports. Instead of immediately withholding a partner’s incentive, responsibility should be assigned to those officials.

BGN outlined the financing changes in Decision No. 63551/2026, which amends Decision No. 63539/2026 on food and operating expenditure for agglomeration-based SPPGs. BGN also published information about the revised decision on its official website.

Cost limits may make it easier to keep track of kitchen spending. But BGN has to ensure that the transfer of the costs of the vehicles to the partners does not affect the deliveries. It should not affect the quality of the meals, especially in remote areas where transport expenses are high.

BGN will conduct transparent audits and establish an accessible review mechanism to ensure that the policy controls spending without weakening services for beneficiaries.