I.Metshin on the reconstruction of canteens: “This is the answer to those who said that school restaurants are only for elite schools”

This summer, the program of modernization of school canteens will continue in Kazan. In addition to overhaul of the catering units, cooking equipment will be updated, furniture will be replaced, dishes, inventory and educational posters will be purchased.

“Now the equipment and working conditions in school canteens are no different from good cafes and restaurants in the city. This is the answer to those who said and complained that school restaurants are only for elite schools. From the very beginning, when launching the healthy nutrition program, we set the task to feed all children equally well, both at preschools and schools. This is a huge work that has been carried out systematically since 2006. This is one of our priority programs, which did not stop during the pandemic,”- Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, said today at the Business Monday meeting. He said that taking into account the planned renovation during the summer holidays, 144 canteens will already work as school restaurants in the new school year, which is 78% of their total number.

During the school year, parents inspected the canteens over 15 thousand times

This year, hot meals were organized for 158 thousand Kazan schoolchildren, Rima Mukhamedshina, head of the Department of Food and Social Nutrition of Kazan, told the head of the city.

She noted that the cost of meals has not changed throughout the school year. “This was achieved thanks to long–term fixed contracts, large and stable procurement volumes, as well as stocks of products in high demand,”- R. Mukhamedshina said.

Under the Parental Control project, parents visited the canteens over 15 thousand times. During the visits, the parents of the school students checked the dishes for compliance with the menu and filled out a single checklist in which they prescribed information about the meals. So, 98.5% of parents put the mark “tasty”.

30 catering units at 29 schools of the city will be renovated

With the beginning of the summer holidays, the renovation and modernization of school canteens will continue. “To date, the department has identified 30 catering units at 29 schools of the city, in which overhaul will begin on June 1,”- R. Mukhamedshina said.

This year, the construction of an additional building for gymnasium No.18 of the Privolzhsky district of Kazan is being completed. The head of the department noted that students of the Feshin Kazan Art College were involved in the development of the design project of the canteen.

As a result, by the beginning of the school year, 144 school restaurants will be operating in the capital of Tatarstan. “School restaurants will provide high quality standards and comfortable conditions for schoolchildren, and also a high level for chefs,”- the Mayor stressed. He noted that Kazan is a meeting place for colleagues from municipalities from all around the country, and the healthy nutrition project in Kazan schools is one of the key ones they get acquainted with when visiting our city.

The Mayor thanked the staff of the department and its director for the work and noted that the department is constantly introducing new and unique formats for each canteen, thanks to which there is not a single canteen similar to each other in the city.

The Mayor noted that thanks to the close work of the department and the Parent’s Council, the desired goals in school catering were achieved. “Now it is necessary to maintain this high level,"- the Mayor summed up.