Gyeongnam Office of Education Conducts Radiation Survey on Seafood in School Meals Across the Province

Separate Ordering of Seafood, Continuous Operation of Safety Communication Team

The Gyeongnam Office of Education announced on the 6th that it will strengthen the safety of seafood used in school meals in preparation for the discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan into the ocean.

The provincial education office will conduct a full survey of all schools in the province for radioactive testing of seafood, instead of the previous sample survey targeting only some schools.

The full survey will cover 15 frequently used seafood items delivered to schools for meals, including anchovies, squid, pollock, shrimp, mackerel, Spanish mackerel, webfoot octopus, crab, flatfish, clams, octopus, kelp, eel, anglerfish, and seaweed.

Radioactive testing results for seafood, which were previously disclosed once a year on the provincial education office’s website, will be published immediately by item upon completion of analysis starting from the second half of this year.

Gyeongnam Office of Education.
Photo by Lee Seryeong

From April next year, the tentatively named Food Safety and Nutrition Experience Center will open, and radioactive nuclide analyzers will be supplied to designated education support offices to enable ongoing testing.

They will establish an active cooperation system with related agencies to share information on radiation safety and promptly notify suppliers to stop delivery and dispose of products if food materials are deemed unsuitable.

At the same time, alternative food materials will be secured to ensure there is no disruption to school meals.

From the school meal contracts in September, separate ordering of seafood will be implemented.

Seafood suppliers must attach a certificate confirming the results of radioactive testing when delivering products to schools.

The provincial education office will operate a seafood safety communication group composed of experts, parents, nutritionists, nutrition teachers, and seafood companies to gather opinions on strengthening seafood safety and share related information.

When inspecting food materials at schools, the origin of seafood will be checked, and the origin of seafood and seafood processed products used in school meals will be reflected in the menu and communicated to each household as well as disclosed on the school website.

Yoo Sang-jo, Director of the Education Welfare Division, said, “We will do our best to enhance the safety of seafood in school meals to alleviate the concerns of parents and students and to provide high-quality and safe school meals.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.