New Taipei Launches Free School Lunches and Expands Weekly Milk Program to Junior High Schools

New Taipei marked the first day of the 115th academic year by launching free school lunches and extending its weekly milk program to junior high schools.

The city’s Education Bureau said 323,000 students at public and private elementary and junior high schools would benefit from the free meals. Before classes began, school kitchens and central catering facilities completed sanitation work, equipment checks and meal preparations.

Officials also inspected serving routes, food quality, hygiene and safety, cooking oil use and ingredient traceability. The city said it would continue using inspections by district supervisors, joint checks by multiple departments and digital food-safety monitoring to keep meal services running properly.

The “Happy Milk Week” program now reaches about 430,000 children from age two through junior high. Each child can receive one carton or serving of milk, soy milk or yogurt each week, including during winter and summer breaks. Schools also organized orientation activities and games to help new students become familiar with their surroundings, while support teams and parent-teacher cooperation will assist children who face emotional or learning needs.