Scandal over school lunches in Lviv; cafeteria to be closed for 10 days
At School No. 32 in Lviv, an unscheduled inspection of the cafeteria was conducted after photos of school lunches appeared on social media. The State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection found violations of food safety and sanitation regulations and decided to close the cafeteria for ten days.
The inspection was prompted by photos of the school’s student meals that were posted on social media. Following this, specialists from the Main Directorate of the State Food and Consumer Service in Lviv Oblast conducted an unscheduled inspection of the cafeteria. They checked whether the facility was complying with food safety requirements and sanitary standards.
Based on the results of the inspection, the experts stated that they had discovered “serious violations” in the cafeteria. They also found products in the freezers whose expiration dates had already passed.
The State Food and Consumer Service reported that it is taking measures to seize these products and close the cafeteria for ten days.
“The situation regarding school meal services is being monitored by the Main Directorate of the State Food and Consumer Service in Lviv Oblast,” the agency reported.
Journalist Oleg Radik also wrote about the results of the inspection. He reported that during the State Food and Consumer Service’s inspection, products with expired expiration dates were allegedly found in the cafeteria’s freezers. In particular, Radik published a photo of a package of french fries with an expiration date of February 11, 2026.
“Expired products prohibited for consumption by children were also found in the freezers (potato chips: expiration date February 11, 2026),” Radik wrote.
This was reported with reference to the Main Directorate of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection in the Lviv region.
Problems with school meals were found in half of the schools inspected in Ukraine.
In Kyiv, 51% of students are already attending school in person. Just a week ago, that figure was 45%. At the same time, the number of schools operating exclusively online has dropped from 11 to five.
