On the afternoon of April 4, at the regular government press conference in March 2026, Mr. Hoang Duc Minh - Director of the Department of Students (Ministry of Education and Training), informed the press about ensuring food safety in schools, after the incident of 300 tons of dirty meat being put into the kitchen for students in Hanoi.
According to Mr. Hoang Duc Minh, the issue of food safety and hygiene (FS) and the health of learners is one of the contents that the Ministry of Education and Training as well as the entire education sector are very concerned about, because this is a factor directly affecting teaching and learning, the educational environment as well as the learning process of students.
Therefore, over the past time, the Ministry of Education and Training has focused on performing its functions, such as propaganda and education on food safety; and at the same time coordinated to direct educational institutions to ensure food safety and hygiene throughout the system.
With management functions, the Ministry of Education and Training has coordinated with the Ministry of Health to issue Circular No. 08/2008 guiding the work of ensuring food hygiene and safety in educational institutions. In addition, in 2016, the two ministries continued to issue Joint Circular No. 13 on school health work, which includes content directly related to students' health, meals and food safety in schools.
Every year, these contents are included in the guidance on school year tasks at all levels of education and strengthened direction for implementation.
Recently, when a number of incidents related to dirty food in schools appeared, on April 3, 2026, the Ministry of Education and Training issued Official Dispatch No. 1602, directing the Department of Education and Training, higher education institutions, training institutions and all educational institutions nationwide to implement a number of key tasks:
First, strictly implement food safety regulations according to the direction of the Party, State, Ministry of Education and Training and relevant ministries and sectors.
Second, urgently review and inspect all contracts with units providing meals and food for schools; require strict implementation of regulations and commitments in contracts. When violations are detected, it is necessary to promptly rectify, make records and coordinate with functional agencies to handle them strictly.
At the same time, publicize the list of units providing meals and food on the electronic information page and mass media for parents and society to jointly monitor and promptly detect violations.
Third, continue to promote propaganda and education on food safety and hygiene knowledge for management staff, teachers, and staff in schools; ensure hygiene at kitchens and canteens (if any), proactively prevent the risk of food contamination and disease transmission through food.
Fourth, strengthen coordination in inspection between educational institutions and health agencies, school health and related units; promote supervision with the participation of families, schools and society, especially the Parents' Representative Board, Youth Union organizations, in order to promptly detect and handle violations.
Along with that, it is necessary to enhance the role and responsibility of heads of educational institutions when violations occur.
With the spirit of strengthening the responsibility of all parties, we expect that the situation of dirty food entering the school environment will be prevented and pushed back," Mr. Hoang Duc Minh affirmed.
