<![CDATA[Elementary school-aged children are a critical age group undergoing rapid growth and development. Meeting optimal nutritional needs will help children achieve age-appropriate height and weight and increase their resistance to various diseases. As a national strategic measure to break the chain of malnutrition and prepare the Golden Indonesia Generation of 2045, the government launched the Free Nutritional Meals Program (MBG). The purpose of this scientific article is to determine the relationship between students' perceptions of the implementation of the Free Nutritional Meals Program (MBG) and their nutritional status. The method used in this article is a quantitative correlation study with a cross-sectional design. The population was all 126 students in grades 1 to 6 at Kedungsari 2 Public Elementary School, Magelang City. Based on the minimum number of respondents and inclusion criteria, the sample size used in this study was 82 students, consisting of grades 2-5. The study was conducted from April to July 2026. Analysis was conducted using the Chi-Square (χ²) test with a significance level (α) of 0.05. The chi-square test results showed a p-value of 0.180 (p > 0.05), indicating that there was no statistically significant relationship between students' perceptions of the implementation of the Free Nutritional Meal Program (MBG) and the nutritional status of students in grades II–V. Students with positive perceptions were found in all nutritional status categories, including overweight and obese. This confirms that nutritional status is not solely influenced by students' perceptions of MBG but is the result of the interaction of many factors, such as home food consumption patterns, eating habits, physical activity, health conditions, nutritional knowledge, and family socioeconomic conditions.]]>
