Chinese school kitchen used filthy oil to cook children’s meals, parents say
- Authorities launch an investigation after bowl filled with thick black oil found in cupboard during open day
- Canteen worker surprised at parents’ concern, asks if they ‘just throw their oil away’ after frying
Authorities in east China are investigating allegations that a school kitchen used dirty cooking oil to prepare children’s meals in the latest food safety scandal to hit the country’s education system.
Officials were alerted to the outcry after parents of pupils at the Wenquan School in Weihai, Shandong province, posted images online of what they said was a bowl filled with black, lumpy oil that they found in a cupboard during a tour of the kitchen as part of an open day on Thursday.
The posts sparked widespread criticism after being shared on WeChat and Weibo, China’s two most popular social media platforms.
According to a report by The Beijing News, when one of the visiting parents challenged a member of the kitchen staff about the discovery, the worker could not understand what all the fuss was about.
“Do you just throw your oil away after frying something?” the person was quoted as saying.
China’s authorities have been battling the illicit use of “gutter oil” – a term used to describe recycled cooking oil – in school canteens, cafes and restaurants for many years, but the problem remains.