A resident of Almaty posted a video from the canteen of school No. 67, claiming that cooks were allegedly collecting leftovers to serve them again to children the following day.
According to Informburo.kz, following the publication, an interdepartmental expert group for food quality control conducted an inspection at the educational institution.
It emerged that the experts concluded the food was not reused, but they did identify other violations in the organisation of the catering service.
"Unsatisfactory quality of salads was recorded, which is likely linked to a violation of the technological card and preparation processes. Following the monitoring, letters were sent to the Sanitary Safety Department of Almaty," reported the city's education department.
The headteacher of the school will face disciplinary measures. Furthermore, the department initiated an unscheduled inspection of the food service provider.
For context, on 6 September 2024, in the Beshshoky residential area of the village of Mangistau, Munaily District, Mangistau Region, a large number of primary school children were poisoned after eating lunch in the canteen.
The Minister of Health, Akmaral Alnazarova, stated that 462 schoolchildren sought medical help. 96 of them were hospitalised. After the incident, the Minister of Education, Gani Beisembayev, ordered checks to be carried out in all schools across the country.
Meanwhile, it became known that the school canteen was run by Sole Trader "Shakenova D". It was reported that the company's annual turnover was estimated at 2.5 billion tenge. Most contracts with the company were awarded through single-source procurement.
On 16 September, specialists from the laboratory of the National Centre of Expertise of the Mangistau Region identified gross sanitary violations in the school's canteen.
In 20% of the swab and smear samples taken from the school canteen, intestinal bacteria were found. Staphylococcus was detected in six canteen employees. Additionally, a dish washer and a food server were found to be carriers of dysentery.
In October, the Minister of Education, Gani Beisembayev, said that following this incident, the head of the Mangistau Region’s education department resigned, and the deputy governor of the region received a reprimand. Furthermore, the school terminated its contract with the company providing the catering services.
In November, Beisembayev announced that his department and the Ministry of Health plan to develop a new food standard for educational institutions, intended to be introduced at the start of the new academic year.