(CN) School milk programme under way

[Guest guest]

China Daily http://www1.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2001-11-21/44552.html

(HU YAN)

11/21/2001

 

SHANGHAI: China will carry out a school milk programme in 20 provinces,

municipalities and autonomous regions to promote the healthy growth of the

young, declared State top officials at the 2nd Asia-Pacific School Milk

Conference held in Shanghai yesterday.

" China has more than 200 million school students, and comprehensive

implementation of its school milk programme is of far-reaching

importance, " said Zhang Baowen, vice-minister of the State Ministry of

Agriculture.

 

The programme's goal is to ensure that students get safe, nutritious, cheap

and convenient dairy products in schools through the support of all levels

of government.

 

Officials believe the programme will not only benefit the young generation

or the following several generations, but also improve the health of the

whole nation. And it will also provide a strong stimulus to the country's

dairy industry, rural farming and related businesses.

 

Recognizing milk as an important element in the diet of growing children,

many countries have established school milk programmes in recent years. It

also promotes milk consumption and helps establish the habit of milk

drinking in adult life.

 

The central government started the school milk programme two years ago,

setting up national and local school programme offices and drafting special

rules for the programme.

 

In 1999, five major cities carried out a trial programme. They were Beijing,

Tianjin, Shanghai, Shenyang and Guangzhou. The pilot project has been

remarkably successful: A daily supply of 600,000 packages of milk is

delivered to students in 2,000 schools in these cities.

 

At present, 20 provincial regions are prepared to implement the programme,

which will gradually spread from major cities to smaller ones and towns.

 

To ensure that all school children can drink milk, experts are calling for

more financial support from government or introducing preferential tax

policies, which may encourage enterprises to provide school milk at a

cheaper price.

 

Some cities like Shanghai are exploring ways to help children from poor

families by collecting special funds with the help of schools and the

general public.

 

Officials also stressed that the enhancement of inspection measures to

ensure safe production, processing and transportation of milk was crucial

for the success of the programme.

 

The two-day conference initiated and supported by the Food and Agriculture

Organization of the United Nations brought together about 300 participants

from more than 20 countries and regions in the Asia-Pacific area.

 

Representatives from government, the dairy industry, and education and

nutrition fields exchanged their experiences and successful models and

strategies used in carrying out school milk programmes.