Taipei school lunches: 108,000 students ate carcinogenic oil, councilor lists 10 major flaws

Taipei City Councilor Chiu Hsiu-chu has revealed that a significant number of students in the capital have been exposed to carcinogenic oil through their school lunches. A total of 108,765 students across 130 primary and secondary schools and kindergartens consumed lunches prepared with oil from a company implicated in a food safety scandal.

The scandal involves 'Chung Lien Oil,' which allegedly supplied carcinogenic oil. Chiu Hsiu-chu presented a list of ten major deficiencies identified in the Taipei City Government's education department's oversight of school lunch programs. These deficiencies range from inadequate equipment maintenance and cross-contamination prevention to issues with temperature monitoring and staff hygiene records.

According to the Education Bureau's investigation as of July 28, 13 school lunch catering companies used the problematic oil. Zhongshan Elementary School had the highest number of affected students, with 46 days of exposure, followed by Ren'ai Elementary School (44 days) and Wuchang Elementary School and Jian'an Elementary School (33 days each).

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The Education Bureau actively assists campuses in closely monitoring students' health conditions. Secondly, if students seek compensation, the Education Bureau should expedite the process for parents to complete the group litigation compensation procedures. By the end of September after school starts, the data statistics should be completed.

Ren'ai Elementary School reported the largest number of affected students at 4,210, followed by Donghu Elementary School with 3,580 students, and Da'an Industrial Vocational High School with 2,890 students. The Taipei City Hospital has opened clinics for affected students, and the Education Bureau is assisting parents with potential group legal action for compensation.

Education Bureau Director Tang Chih-min assured that food safety inspections would be intensified. Key testing items will now include heavy metals and benzo(a)pyrene, with the number of annual inspections increasing from 90 to 120 after the school year begins. Chiu Hsiu-chu stressed that the number of inspections is less important than ensuring critical contaminants like benzo(a)pyrene are consistently tested.

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We will include items such as heavy metals and benzo(a)pyrene in the inspection focus, and food safety testing will continue to be strengthened.