2018-07-31
CHINA

​​​​​​Establishing standards in milk safety at schools in China

Tetra Pak is part of a collaborative initiative to improve milk safety in schools connected to the School Milk Program in China. According to the Dairy Association of China, the country’s National School Milk Program provides around 20 million school children with milk, giving them essential nutrition for their development.

Step by step, we can help spread knowledge about nutritious and safe milk across the world’s most populous country.

The challenge

After more than ten years of development, China´s National School Milk Programme has a regulated standard system for milk sourcing and production. However, there are still challenges in ensuring full safety for drinking milk in schools. For example, school staff need to learn about lactose sensitivity, how to correctly store milk, how to distribute the milk to students and how to recycle used cartons.​

Initiative

Together with the China Association of Student Nutrition and Health Promotion and the Dairy Association of China, Tetra Pak works in identifying and certifying “Promotion Model Schools”, creating an operational standard that can be shared with nearby schools. Together with our partners, we inspect and evaluate each potential model school on staff training, operational standards, safety protocols and issue management, storage, distribution, and carton recycling.​

Value

In this way, we are helping create high standards for milk handling, while raising knowledge and awareness of milk as a safe and nutritious beverage. The programme is also a platform for dairies to work with schools and local authorities to create long-term partnerships.​​​​​

Looking ahead

In 2017, we certified 53 schools as ‘Promotion Model Schools’. Our aim is to certify another 50 schools by the end of 2018.

Two Chinese children drinking milk in a classroom