The presentation of the collection took place in Kyiv at secondary school No. 281 with the participation of First Lady Olena Zelenska, Minister of Health Viktor Liashko, Minister of Education and ScienceOksen Lisovyi, Ambassador of Switzerland to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova Felix Baumann,Head of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection Serhiy Tkachuk, Head of the National Association of Public Catering and Head of the School Nutrition Reform TeamOrest Stepanyak, Chef Yevhen Klopotenko, and Head of the Ukrainian-Swiss Project «Act for Health» in Ukraine Halyna Maistruk.
Why is it important?
The first collection of dishes for school canteens, which was approved in 2022, became the starting point for the school nutrition reform and the beginning of fundamental changes. During this time, Chef Yevhen Klopotenko's team realized that 180 dishes were too few to meet all the nutritional needs of modern children. So they decided to create a collection of recommended recipes with more dishes. All of them have been developed in collaboration with leading nutritionists and technologists in Ukraine, including experts from the Marzieiev Institute of Public Health, Kyiv National University of Trade and Economics, and Poltava University of Economics and Trade.
«Our goal was to create the most complete collection of recipes to diversify the choice of dishes in school canteens and show that healthy eating is delicious,” says the author of the collection, chef Yevhen Klopotenko. - I am confident that today everyone will be able to choose their favorite dishes from more than 600 options».
All the dishes included in the collection meet the requirements of the Cabinet of Ministers' Resolution No. 305 «On Approval of the Norms and Procedure for Organizing Catering in Educational Institutions and Children's Health and Recreation Facilities,» and the collection itself has been approved by the State Food and Consumer Service, the Marziiev Institute of Public Health, and the commission of the Institute for Modernization of Education Content (MES) for use in the educational process.
«When people say ‘a recipe from Klopotenko’, the whole country knows what they mean. I'm grateful to him for being a famous chef and joining the school nutrition reform. Yevhen strengthened the reform and even became its myth. For example, there is still a myth that all his recipes are mandatory. In fact, this wonderful, clear and detailed book is a help and inspiration for those who prepare school lunches and feed children every day. It is a very cool base and a hint, but no one is forcing anyone to cook exclusively according to it,» says Olena Zelenska, First Lady of Ukraine.
What has changed?
«Ukraine, as the cultural center of Europe, is noted for its unique and diverse culinary heritage, which reflects the influences of numerous European cultures,» said Orest Stepaniak, Head of the School Nutrition Reform Team, Head of the National Association of Public Catering. Developing menus for educational institutions requires deep expertise, and thanks to the tremendous work of Yevhen Klopotenko's team, this collection will be the key to significantly expanding the range of dishes in schools across the country!
The updated cookbook consists of 14 chapters and 621 recipes. It includes both traditional Ukrainian dishes and popular international dishes, including those from European school menus.
The book takes into account the current nutritional needs of children - more than 80 alternatives to lactose and gluten-free dishes are offered, and each technological card indicates the existing allergens. «Now, even if only one child in a school has special nutritional needs, he or she, like other children, will have access to healthy food,» emphasized Viktor Lyashko, Minister of Health of Ukraine.
The collection includes not only step-by-step recipes, but also technical cards that will greatly facilitate the work of school cooks. They are adapted to different cooking formats: both with old and modern equipment. In addition, each dish is accompanied by examples of serving and decoration."A separate focus of attention within the reform is the training of cooks. We have recently approved the professional standard «Cook of an educational institution,” says Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine Oksen Lisovyi. - «In addition, with the support of partners, we have created culinary hubs for training and advanced training of cooks. Last year, 11 such hubs were launched in nine oblasts of Ukraine, and five more have opened this year. And the same number will start working by the end of spring.»
The development and publication of the book became possible thanks to the support of the Ukrainian-Swiss project «Act for Health» implemented by a consortium of organizations - GFA Consulting Group, University Hospitals of Geneva/Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève (HUG), the Charitable Foundation «Women's Health and Family Planning» and One Health agency with financial support from Switzerland.
Switzerland has been supporting a healthy environment in Ukrainian schools for over 10 years. Today's event is a great example of how everyone is united around the idea of prioritizing children's health as one of the most important investments in the health of the future generation of Ukrainians who will live in Ukraine and develop this beautiful country,» said Felix Baumann, Ambassador of Switzerland to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova.
«Healthy eating is one of the most reliable ways to prevent the risk of developing chronic diseases, so investing in healthy school meals will result in improved health for an entire generation of Ukrainian children.
Our joint initiatives include support for the online platform «Znaimo» znaimo.gov.ua, research on schoolchildren's eating habits and epidemiological monitoring of obesity prevalence among children, assistance in equipping school canteens, educational materials, training of cooks, and now the publication of this wonderful collection of recipes for modern and healthy dishes,» said HalynaMaistruk, Head of the Ukrainian-Swiss project «Act for Health» in Ukraine.
With the support of the Ukrainian-Swiss project «Act for Health», printed copies of the collection will be distributed free of charge to educational institutions, leading reform experts and active participants in school nutrition changes. The online version of the collection is freely available on the portal «Znaimo» and on the Cult Food website.
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