Leading digital transformation in food safety! Taichung City Government held its 4th Food Safety Conference 2024 at the City Hall today (13th). The Food Safety Division presented a special report on "Leading Digital Transformation in Food Safety to Build a Digital Food Safety City." In contrast, the Education Bureau reported on "Improving School Lunch Menu Quality and Satisfaction." Mayor Shiu-Yen Lu, who presided over the meeting, commended the food safety achievements and thanked committee members and staff for their long-term commitment to safeguarding citizens' food safety and ensuring healthier and safer food consumption. The city government has established the nation's largest inspection capacity, investing substantial human resources, materials, and funding to maintain food safety for citizens continuously.

Mayor Lu noted that school lunch nutrition concerns everyone, with many council members focusing on children's nutrition. Taichung provides the highest school lunch subsidies nationwide while maintaining good quality, and she thanked council members for their suggestions for improvement. Beyond safety, student satisfaction with school lunches is crucial, and the city government will continue working to ensure satisfaction among teachers and students who receive school lunches. Additionally, with the approaching year-end festivities, including Christmas, New Year's, Lunar New Year, and Lantern Festival - peak seasons for family gatherings and dining out - food safety becomes paramount, making this a busy period for relevant staff members, whose efforts she appreciates.

The Health Bureau stated that food safety is a core municipal priority, fundamental to both public health and urban development. The city continues implementing smart technology and promoting public participation, advancing higher food safety management standards. Taichung leads the nation with its pioneering "Taichung Food and Drug Safety Smart Cloud." The city's inspection volume ranks first among special municipalities through smart food safety governance, with 83,557 food inspections conducted last year. Using the GIS decision-making system to target high-risk operators for enhanced inspections and sampling, Taichung achieved the nation's lowest "food safety inspection non-compliance rate." The city has also implemented mobile inspections, promoting ESG sustainable development, and established a food safety GIS section (https://gov.tw/eyJ) to publicize food inspection and sampling information, encouraging public participation in oversight.

The Food and Drug Administration explained that the Taichung Food and Drug Safety Smart Cloud integrates 27 central and local databases into the "Taichung Food Safety Database" and "Food, Drug, and Cosmetics GIS Decision System." It incorporates IoT concepts and connects with the "Food and Drug Inspection Information System" and "Food and Drug Safety Testing Information Integration Management System." Through big data analysis and scientific management, it effectively implements hierarchical management of high-risk operators and precise inspections, significantly improving food safety management efficiency.

The Food and Drug Administration has announced that the "Taichung Food and Drug Safety Smart Cloud—Food Safety GIS Section" has published 240,000 inspection records as of the end of October this year to enable citizens to easily access citywide food inspection and sampling information. The division will continue strengthening promotion through diverse channels and expanding citizen participation in food safety supervision.

The Education Bureau noted that 85 nutritionists have been appointed to oversee food ingredients to improve school lunch quality. The city promotes local agricultural products in meals and international lunch recipe exchange programs. Taichung schools have achieved outstanding results in the Taiwan School Lunch Competition. WuChuan Junior High School and Lai Cuo Elementary School won the championship and Excellence in Food Education Teaching Award last year. This year, Ching Hai Junior High School and Nan-Tun Elementary School won the tournament and third place using local organic rice and chives from Qingshui.

Furthermore, a joint task force comprising the Health Bureau and Agriculture Bureau conducts cross-departmental inspections of school kitchens, food suppliers, and catering factories throughout the city. This ensures food traceability and quality control for school lunches, providing peace of mind for both students and parents.