Strengthen control and ensure food safety in schools.

One of the main concerns for parents in the upcoming 2025-2026 school year is school food safety. This is especially true in Dong Nai province, which has a large student population and many public and private schools offering boarding programs. Therefore, relevant authorities and schools need to strengthen measures to ensure food safety and prevent food poisoning incidents in schools from the very beginning of the school year.

Recently, several food poisoning incidents have occurred in provinces and cities across the country due to students eating meals at school or buying food outside the school gates. Most recently, on April 9th, after lunch at Vo Thi Sau Primary School ( Ho Chi Minh City), more than 20 students showed symptoms of abdominal pain, vomiting, fever, and diarrhea and were taken to the hospital by their families for examination. Vo Thi Sau Primary School contracts with an industrial catering company to provide meals for its students.

In Dong Nai province , although no food poisoning incidents have occurred in schools recently, the risk of food poisoning remains. According to authorities, food safety measures in school cafeterias have seen positive changes, but some shortcomings persist, such as: some schools lack the necessary facilities for food preservation; food sample retention and staff training are often superficial; and some rely on pre-prepared meals, posing significant transportation risks. Furthermore, the sale of unsafe food outside some school gates is a cause for concern among parents.

Therefore, in this new school year, strengthening management measures for school kitchens, canteens, and food service providers to minimize the risk of food poisoning is essential. First, it is necessary to focus on disseminating information and guiding school kitchens and food service businesses to strictly control the origin and source of food ingredients, ensure hygiene throughout the entire process of food preparation, processing, and transportation, adhere to food safety conditions, conduct three-step food inspection, and retain food samples. Secondly, it is crucial to intensify inspections, controls, and strictly penalize violations related to food safety in schools.

To achieve this, in addition to strengthening the responsibility of relevant authorities, schools and parents also have a responsibility in managing, coordinating, and supervising school cafeterias and canteens. The supervisory role of parent-teacher associations should be promoted, considering them as the community's "eyes and ears" in protecting children's health. Furthermore, public awareness campaigns must be emphasized. Regular training should be organized for cafeteria staff, guiding teachers, students, and parents in identifying food poisoning risks; and promptly reporting any shortcomings related to food safety in schools so that the school can take timely action to ensure student health, contributing to building a safe, healthy, and trustworthy educational environment.

Dang Ngoc

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/xa-hoi/202509/tang-kiem-soat-dam-bao-an-toan-thuc-pham-hoc-duong-c0c2b38/