Dirty food around schools

anhbaitren(1).jpg — Students can easily buy snacks right in front of the school gate. Photo: Khac Tri.

Food safety concerns

On April 5, many students ate breakfast in front of a school gate in Nha Trang City, including shredded chicken rice, chicken hamburgers, and baguettes. After entering the classroom, they showed signs of stomachache and nausea, and were then taken to the emergency room.

On the same day, the leader of the Lam Dong Province Health Department confirmed that 30 secondary school students had to be hospitalized for health check-ups after eating strange candy bought in front of the school gate because they had symptoms of headache, stomachache, and nausea. Initial determination determined that the students did not suffer from common food poisoning. They had mild symptoms of hysteria: fatigue, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, and pain. The disease is often manifested by movement disorders, sensory disorders, and mental disorders. Currently, the authorities have taken candy samples for testing and have sent a written report to the higher authorities requesting verification.

Previously, on April 3, 19 students in Vinh Long were poisoned and had to go to the emergency room after buying “fart bombs” (of foreign origin) from outside to play in the school yard. This is a banned substance, but is still easily bought and sold by students in front of the school gate.

On March 20, some third and fourth grade students in Tra Cu, Tra Vinh province bought 11 explosive balloons, also known as stinky balloons. They brought these balloons into class, used their hands to hit the balloons so hard that they inflated to play, leading to the balloons exploding. At around 7:00 a.m., the school's teacher entered the classroom and discovered 21 students showing signs of vomiting and headaches, so they were taken to the emergency room.

Remember at the end of December 2023, many students in Hanoi had to be hospitalized for health checks after eating candies with foreign words printed on the packaging. Immediately after that, the Hanoi Department of Education and Training (DET) directed the leaders of the Department of Education and Training of 30 districts, towns and affiliated units and schools to request to strengthen management and ensure food safety and hygiene in schools. The schools then issued notices and sent messages to all parents of students in all classes to warn about strange candies in particular as well as to pay attention to foods, food, and toys of unknown origin around the school gate to remind their children to ensure their health.

However, nowadays, many families do not let their children eat breakfast at home but take them to the school gate to buy food or give them money to eat breakfast themselves. When they have money in hand, some children eat a smaller portion and save the rest to buy snacks and toys. Street vendors and pushcarts around the school gate are a common sight in most schools today.

Tighten management

Faced with concerns about food safety and hygiene, and the health of students, the local education sector has sent many documents to the Department of Education and Training and schools in the areas to direct coordination with local authorities in reminding and prohibiting street vendors in front of school gates; and managing students well during recess. At the same time, it has disseminated to parents and students knowledge about choosing safe food, recognizing and informing schools and management agencies about the trading of food of unknown origin, origin, and expiration date.

However, to properly manage the above food safety conditions and ensure the health of students, it requires not only the education sector but also the drastic participation of functional agencies. In particular, the Department of Health, the Department of Economics, the Market Management Department, etc. need to coordinate with localities to strengthen inspection and urge street vendors to comply with regulations on ensuring food safety and strictly handle violations according to the provisions of law.

In particular, it is required not to sell snacks and other foods of unknown origin, origin, or expiration date; the display must ensure that there is no intrusion of dust, insects, harmful animals, etc., and that it does not cause traffic safety or security problems. Along with that, regularly check and monitor the food safety conditions of street food vendors in front of school gates, and strictly handle violations according to regulations.

According to Dr. Nguyen Tung Lam - Chairman of the Hanoi Educational Psychology Association, to minimize the use of poor quality snacks by students in front of the school gate, the authorities need to further strengthen inspection and strictly handle violations of food hygiene and safety. At the same time, schools, teachers and families also need to coordinate in propaganda to raise awareness among students about the dangers of using snacks of unknown origin in front of the school gate to protect their own health.

Students need to be guided to understand food safety and hygiene, not to buy snacks and toxic toys, instead, they need to use foods with labels, managed according to quality standards, and clear brands. Parents should not let their children bring money to class easily, which will limit the risk of buying snacks of unknown origin sold in front of the school gate.

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