Checks on school canteens to ensure food safety, hygiene
sharjah/ajman — Municipalities in Sharjah and Ajman have launched a crackdown on school canteens to ensure food safety.
Regular inspections are being carried out to monitor the food being served to the students to ensure that there’s no incident of food poisoning. The checks are also aimed at reducing obesity among the children.
A top official at the Sharjah Education Council (SEC) said the health safety of the students is a top priority. “The SEC is coordinating with the departments concerned to conduct inspections to make sure that the school canteens are following health standards and prescribed conditions.”
The SEC has also been organising periodic meetings with canteen owners to discuss food safety issues and kinds of food being served to the students to prevent not just poisoning but obesity as well, he said.
The inspection team — that includes experts from the Sharjah Municipality and members of health and environment committee — is issuing warnings to canteen owners and appealing to them to comply with regulations. Hefty fines will be imposed on errant canteens and they may be ordered shut if students’ health is compromised.
“The food consumed in school canteens should contribute to students’ nutrients intake and also improve their dietary habits,” the official pointed out. He added that it is important that parents, teachers and students work together to support a school culture in which pupils can choose nutritious and healthy foods.
The official said the ‘Healthy Food For Students’ initiative, launched in the academic year 2011-2012, has contributed in implementing health and hygiene rules and reduced the number of obese students. He stressed that food suppliers must follow safety rules while transporting their stuff to the canteens.
The official said the SEC always welcomed complaints of parents against food suppliers and canteens. “The council has zero tolerance towards any malpractices or violations that may affect the health of students and necessary action will be taken against the offenders.”
He added that the SEC and authorities concerned will hold educational training and awareness programmes to educate workers in the canteens on the proper way to handle food.
Surprise inspections
The Ajman Municipality is also conducting surprise inspections on canteens operating in the emirate
to ensure the food being offered to the students is healthy and hygienic. The inspection also includes checking of water tanks in the schools.
Khaled Al Housini, director of the Health and Environment Department at the municipality, said inspections have been carried out prior to the start of the new academic year to ensure that the schools are abiding by the health safety norms set by the civic body. These inspections will continue throughout the fffyear.
Last year, many school canteens were found failing to comply with health and environment standards. Parents lodged a lot of complaints about negligence by some schools that endangered students’ health. However, since the beginning of this year, no such complaints have been received yet.
“The school canteens violating rules will be issued a notice and face stringent penalties,” a municipality official said.
The school canteens violating rules will be issued a notice and face stringent penalties.”
Khaled Al Housini,