Keelung City Councilor questioned whether the chef’s entry into the school would cause sugar and oil to exceed the standard. The mayor emphasized that nutrition and health should not exceed the standard.
Quick Look
- Keelung City Councilor Shi Weizheng questioned whether the use of sugar and oil in Anle and Zhongshan District schools after the chefs entered the school for guidance was suspected to have exceeded the standard, which caused the kitchen workers to be stressed and even resigned.
- He asked the city government to specify recipes and improve communication.
- Director of Education Wu Yujie confirmed that the standard was not exceeded.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Keelung City has promoted a free nutritious lunch policy since the 2015 academic year, and recently introduced professional chefs to schools to provide guidance to improve the quality of catering. However, this has triggered a backlash from grassroots kitchen workers and nutritionists over the standards for the use of sugar and oil and work pressure.
Keelung has been promoting a free nutritious lunch policy since the 2015 school year. In addition to being free, delicious nutritious lunches are even more important. However, city councilor Shi Weizhengjin questioned and said that nutritionists in Anle and Zhongshan District reported that the chef's guidance may lead to excessive sugar and oil, and the strict requirements caused the backlash and even resignation of grassroots kitchen workers, urging the city government to formulate clear recipe guidelines and improve communication. Mayor Xie Guoliang emphasized that nutrition and health must not exceed the standard. Education Director Wu Yujie clarified that there was no violation after confirmation, and the city government will strengthen counseling and adjustment.
The Keelung City Council held the mayor's general policy inquiry today, and Shi Weizheng raised a question about the "chefs in schools" promoted by the city government. Shi Weizheng pointed out that the general direction of the city government entrusting professional units to promote the introduction of chefs into schools is worthy of recognition. However, school nutritionists in Anle District and Zhongshan District reported that after the chefs came to the schools to provide guidance, the use of sugar and oil was suspected to exceed the standard in order to make lunch delicious. This not only puts nutritionists in a difficult position, but also the front-line kitchen workers face the double pressure of "not exceeding the nutritional standards but also meeting the delicious requirements." This has led to a low atmosphere in the kitchen and even triggered a chain reaction where some kitchen workers threatened to quit their jobs.
Please read on...
Shi Weizheng emphasized that good eating is about forming habits. He suggested that the city government come up with a clear module of weekly recipes, cooking suggestions and operating instructions so that kitchen workers can follow them. He also hoped that experts would pay attention to their communication attitude and be more gentle to avoid "top vs. bottom" pressure on grassroots staff.
Wu Yujie said that after receiving a report from the school a few days ago whether the salt and sugar instructed by the chef exceeded the standard, the Education Department immediately confirmed it and the verification result "actually did not exceed the standard." The first priority for chefs entering the school is to have sufficient and balanced nutrition, followed by the pursuit of delicious food. Since the kitchen workers are already accustomed to cooking methods, it is inevitable that chefs will need a running-in period when teaching new skills. The city government will continue to ask chefs to provide more encouragement to the kitchen workers.
Xie Guoliang said that the core value of nutritious lunch should still be nutrition and health, and "the prerequisite must not exceed the standard." In response to Shi Weizheng's specific suggestions, he promised that the city government will consider fixing the cooking methods and establishing a module to provide clear and repeatable operational basis on the front line, and reminded experts that attitude is very important when providing tutoring in schools.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The Keelung City Government will discuss fixing cooking methods and establishing an operating module to provide clear first-line evidence.
Likely · Within weeks
The city government will strengthen the communication attitude of chefs when they enter schools for tutoring, and encourage experts to give more encouragement to chefs
Very likely · Within days
Open Questions
- Which schools specifically reported excessive sugar and oil?
- What professional units do chefs attend?
- When will the city government complete the fixation and modeling of cooking methods?






