Jakarta. State-owned food holding company ID Food and the National Nutrition Agency on Friday signed a memorandum of understanding on collaborative works to implement the government’s free nutritious food supplies for school-aged children.

ID Food CEO Sis Apik Wijayanto said the "strategic cooperation" will include transportation and storage of raw materials and food production and the utilization of state properties as public kitchens.

“Under the MoU, both parties also agreed on data and information exchange regarding the national nutrition program, food ecosystem cooperation, and shared social and environmental responsibilities,” Sis Apik said after signing the MoU with National Nutrition Agency Head Dadan Hindayana in Jakarta.

“ID Food and the National Nutrition Agency will lend each other’s competence in the cooperation. As a food producer with a vast array of products, ID Food will act as the aggregator of food commodities and raw materials as well as the distributor to support the nutritious food program,” he added.

The company has set up a task force to implement the program and draft procurement schemes in collaboration with farmers and fishermen to promote inclusive economic development.

ID Food oversees several subsidiaries in the food industry including Sang Hyang Seri which produces paddy seeds and rice; Berdikari which supplies meat, eggs, and milk; and Perikanan Indonesia which supplies seafood.

“We also produce basic food commodities such as sugar, salt, and cooking oil supported by our subsidiaries Perusahaan Perdagangan Indonesia and Rajawali Nusindo for logistics and distribution,” he said.

ID Food has 1,085 warehouses across Indonesia with a combined capacity of 2.5 million tons. 

The company’s nationwide logistical channels will play a crucial role in helping the National Nutrition Agency implement the free meal program, he said.

In the past two years, ID Food has supported the government’s measures to combat stunting by distributing food to 1.4 million families.

National Nutrition Agency Head Dadan Hindayana said last month that the free meal program for children and expectant mothers, a cornerstone of President-elect Prabowo Subianto's campaign, is expected to be both financially massive and logistically complex.

Once fully implemented under Prabowo's presidency, the government will need to allocate Rp 1.2 trillion ($76.7 million) daily, including Rp 800 billion for the procurement of food and milk.

"The free nutritious meal program will benefit 82.9 million people, requiring an annual budget of approximately Rp 400 trillion ($25.6 billion)," Dadan said at the BNI Investor Daily Summit.

"The agency will be spending Rp 1.2 trillion per day as an investment in human capital, with Rp 800 billion dedicated to nutritious food. The scale of spending will be enormous when the program reaches full capacity," he added.

Each service unit will cater to around 3,000 children and will require 200 kilograms of rice, 350 kilograms of chicken or 3,000 eggs, 350 kilograms of vegetables, and 600 liters of milk daily.

"At full scale, we will operate over 30,000 service units across Indonesia, providing meals to students from kindergarten to high school, as well as to pregnant and breastfeeding mothers," Dadan explained.