130 students suffer food poisoning at central Taiwan high schools

中台灣高中130名學生食物中毒

Students from three high schools in Taichung stricken with food poisoning


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Since Sept. 24, at least 130 students from three different high schools in Taichung City have sought hospital treatment after suffering symptoms of food poisoning.

Students began to display symptoms associated with food poisoning — including stomach cramps, vomiting, and diarrhea —after eating food served at Wen-Hua Senior High School, St. Viator Catholic High School, and Fengyuan Commercial High School on Thursday evening. The school dinners were sourced from the same supplier, which the city government has temporarily suspended as a precaution.

Meanwhile, samples of the school dinners have been sent to medical laboratories for testing to identify the source of the outbreak. After initial examinations, health authorities believe the cream puffs that the students ate for dessert caused the mass food poisoning, but they said more clarification is needed.

As of Tuesday morning (Sept. 29), most of the students have been discharged from the hospital. Only five are continuing treatment.

The Taichung Food and Drug Safety Office said the results of the investigation can be expected in four weeks and that the food supplier will be held responsible if the school dinners are found to be contaminated with bacteria or a virus. It also warned that suppliers serving contaminated food will be penalized under the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation and fined between NT$60,000 (US$2,065) and NT$200 million, reported CNA.