Mass Food Poisoning Causes
Havoc in Schools
A mass outbreak of food poisoning at middle and high school cafeterias in the metropolitan area has caused havoc in school operations. Some schools saw a large number of students go home with food poisoning while others postponed end-of-term tests. Some 91 schools nationwide stopped providing meals, leaving students with no option but to take a lunch box from home.
The Education Ministry said Friday some 1,700 students in 25 schools had showed symptoms of food poisoning such as nausea, diarrhea and vomiting since eating school meals supplied by CJ Food System on June 16.
An emergency ministerial meeting presided over by Prime Minister Han Myung-sook decided to inspect some 10,000 schools in the country to check on school meal hygiene and told CJ Food System to suspend catering at schools, hospitals and company cafeterias. If the food company is found responsible, it could be closed down and face an investigation by prosecutors, the government said.
CJ supplies food to 91 schools, 77 hospitals and 386 company cafeterias.
Meanwhile, the Seoul Research Institute of Public Health and Environment estimates the cause to be norovirus, which causes diarrhea, after examining samples from some of the students. Last year, some 719 people were reported to be infected with the virus in six separate cases.
The Korea Food and Drug Administration is investigating a company supplying pork and chicken to CJ after finding that pork and chicken dishes were the common factor in meals at affected schools. "We'll be able to determine the cause of the incident within a couple of days," it added.
The government will provide a special meal allowance for students from low-income families who cannot bring lunch from home. The ruling Uri Party will push for a bill compelling schools to run their own cafeterias and the government to bear some of the cost.
Prosecutors, for their part, have announced a crackdown on suppliers and distributors of spoiled and unsafe food until September.
Vocabulary
Click on words to listen to pronunciation
nausea - a feeling of sickness in the stomach followed by an urge to vomit
compel - compelling: encouraging or
Questions
1. Did you hear about this news already? What was your first reaction to it?
2. Have you ever been food poisoned? If yes, what happened?
3. What actions do you think the following should do: