A school meal program has been paused in Peru after it was blamed for children getting sick in several regions of the country.
Almost 100 children fell ill in Piura in early April after consuming food provided by the Wasi Mikuna program, which includes 4.2 million students across the country.
Illnesses were reported in Bagua, where 25 students suffered symptoms of food poisoning after eating bread and milk. In Coishco, 15 students fell sick after having a breakfast that included bread, eggs, and milk. Other students also became sick.
The program was also connected to illnesses in 2024 when it was called Qali Warma.
Halt to school food supply
During a committee session, legislators from various political parties questioned the Minister of Development and Social Inclusion (MIDIS), Leslie Urteaga Peña, following the incident in Piura and other regions on safety guarantees for food distributed to students.
Urteaga said suspension of the Wasi Mikuna program was agreed in mid-April and a state of emergency for the school food service was declared ahead of the program being redesigned. This process has a deadline of Dec. 31, 2025.
A pilot program is in place in Piura, Cusco, and Ayacucho for 35 schools that involves buying supplies from local markets.
She said 20 officials were dismissed for alleged acts of corruption in 2024, adding that eight of them were involved in the Qali Warma program.
MIDIS has opened legal proceedings against officials linked to the school food program. Charges have also been filed against food suppliers for alleged crimes against public health and public trust.
Urteaga will also appear in a plenary session on May 6 to answer questions about the current and previous incident.
Issues include the measures adopted to stop potentially contaminated food batches, actions taken against those responsible, and progress in disciplinary proceedings against former officials of the defunct Qali Warma program implicated in alleged acts of corruption.
In early April, MIDIS was informed by Sanipes (National Fisheries Health Organization of Peru) that the agency had suspended activities of a company called Karsol for violating several standards. The business is a provider of canned fish to the Wasi Mikuna program. The company said possible storage failures could be at fault.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office said a preliminary investigation has been opened into the alleged crime against public health following the reported poisonings.
Earlier this month, officials conducted a surprise inspection at Consorcio Granix EIRL, a provider for the school meal program. This found facilities were in good condition, as well as good pest control measures, facilities for operating personnel, and clean and orderly production and storage areas.
(To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News, click here.)