Back to school in Dubai: Over 1,500 food items approved for students in new school year

Dubai Municipality approved 1,553 food items for schools before the start of the new academic year. The permits have been granted to companies that supply schools with food products.

The authority ensures that educational institutions only serve approved foods produced by licensed businesses. It has also advised schools to have a person in charge to ensure proper food safety practices.

The Dubai Municipality has a comprehensive food safety plan for educational institutions to ensure that students have access to safe and nutritious food that suits their age and improves their eating habits.

Earlier, the authority carried out several awareness campaigns and control activities to ensure that educational institutions follow environmental, health, and safety standards in preparation for the start of the academic year 2022/2023 for the well-being of students.

Proactive awareness measures were launched by the Municipality for over 500 educational institutions in Dubai, such as kindergartens, nurseries, and schools, along with institutions that provide school uniforms, where a certificate of conformity is required by locally or internationally accredited laboratories to ensure compliance of uniforms to the approved standards and specifications.

As many as 178 samples of food containers and water bottles were collected from various retail & department stores and eCommerce sites to ensure their compliance with the approved standards. In case of non-compliant samples, the authority will notify relevant institutions to take appropriate actions and- if needed - withdraw such non-compliant items before they are sold to the public or acquired by educational institutions.

Guidelines and standards

As per Municipality's guidelines, proactive measures were taken by the authorities to ensure that buildings meet relevant standards and requirements. As part of this, ventilation and air conditioning systems were examined by checking air ducts and filters to reduce polluting elements, in addition to conducting periodic maintenance related to health and safety, swimming pools were checked as per the technical guidelines and manuals approved by the authority, which include safety standards, such as having an approved lifeguard on site, and availability of life jackets, and first aid equipment.

Water systems (such as water tanks and distribution networks) were also examined, and samples were tested by approved laboratories to ensure it is free of contaminants. Nearly 240 water samples from tanks and swimming pools, and coolers were tested by Dubai Central laboratory to ensure their compliance with the approved standards.

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• Dubai