Cabbage from local farmers is no longer being accepted — for now — in the federally funded School Lunch Program, under the local Department of Education, after worms were found two weeks ago in a cabbage dish served for lunch at the Aua Elementary School, where Parents and Teachers Association (PTA) president Maselino Ioane reported the incident to Samoa News on Oct. 31.

It was last week Monday (Nov. 3) that the Department of Agriculture (DoA) put a temporary halt to the purchase of cabbage from local farmers.

The move is being criticized by farmers, who say they are being punished for something that should have been the responsibility of the School Lunch Program and Agriculture personnel.

Agriculture Department director Lealao M. Purcell made the decision over health concerns, telling Samoa News on Oct. 31 that the question which comes to mind is whether his department is responsible for this problem — or is it DOE and the School Lunch Program cooks in the kitchens where the food is prepared, who are not doing their job?

Lealao says he is doesn’t want to point fingers as to the responsible party, but he is making the final decision to halt the purchase of cabbage from local farmers for school lunches until such time it can resume again.

Pressed as to who he believes is at fault for the problem of worms in the cabbage, Lealao pointed out that is very difficult to see the small worms attached to the leaves of cabbage, and even if there is a thorough cleaning of these vegetables, there is always the chance of small worms and other insects remaining inside the cabbage.

He also says that any time that vegetables and fruits are bought from farmers for the school lunch, it's very important that the produce is thoroughly washed.

Lealao offered public apologies to parents, students, and the Aua Elementary School administration over this problem.

Education Department director Vaitinasa Dr. Salu Hunkin-Finau confirmed to Samoa News on Oct. 31 that there was a meeting with DoA on this issue and that no more cabbage will be bought from local farmers — for now.

Asked as to who she believes is responsible for finding the worms in cabbage, Vaitinasa only pointed out that when it comes to farmers and the school lunches, farmers play a role on their side, by washing produce thoroughly and packing their produce properly in clean boxes before delivery.

Vaitinasa said she believes that there are some farmers who are not being honest about thoroughly washing their produce before being taken to be weighed in for the school lunch program.

Asked if it’s the school lunch staff is at fault too for not thoroughly washing the cabbage before using it, Vaitinasa says that cooks for the school lunch could easily be faulted for this problem, but there are times when cooks and staff aren’t able to identify the problem due to the large amount of food to be cooked for students.

(Samoa News notes the long white stems of the “kapisi saina”, as it is known locally, is another difficult aspect of the vegetable when cleaned, as worms would be difficult to detect unless individual attention is paid to each stem with leaf.)

She explained that food for Aua Elementary School is cooked and prepared at the Samoana High School cafeteria, along with food for Samoana students. She said more than 1,000 plates of food are cooked and prepared by staff at the Samoana cafeteria on a daily basis — 5-days a week.

And with such a large number of students to be served during school days, its means there will be times that a problem will occur, she said.

Vaitinasa publicly apologized to parents, students and Aua Elementary School for this problem, with a promise that it will never happen again.

However, the Aua PTA president says that this is the second time this type of problem has occurred, and it appears DOE is taking this matter lightly. He also does not accept the excuse by the DOE director that there will be times that a problem will occur due to the fact that many lunches are being prepared at Samoana's cafeteria.

While the worms were discovered in the lunch dish, before it eaten by a student, the PTA president was very disappointed, saying that someone would be responsible if a student had eaten the cabbage with the worm and it had caused more serious health issues for the student.

(Samoa News was shown a “paper” copy of the photo taken of the worms found in the student’s lunch and two distinctive worms were noted. Unfortunately, the original of the photo was not available as of press time for publication.)

Two parents of Aua Elementary students say they believe the fault lies with the staff at both DOE, DoA, and the school lunch program staff, especially those who are responsible for preparing and cooking the food.

One parent who didn’t want to be identified, says that if school lunch workers were honest in doing their job by thoroughly washing the cabbage or even thoroughly inspecting sections of the cabbage to make sure they are clean and free of any small insects, this would never happen.

FARMERS

There was swift opposition from farmers over Lealao's decision to stop accepting cabbage from local farmers.

One farmer, who did not wish to be identified by name, says that farmers shouldn’t be blamed for something that should have been done by the DOA and School Lunch personnel, who are responsible for checking all produce delivered for the program.

The farmer also says that stopping the acceptance of any produce for the program, means no income to take care of their families.

During a meeting last month which included the governor, several directors and farmers, Vaitinasa pointed out that there are still farmers who are not taking their responsibilities seriously, who are not cleaning and washing produce before delivery to the school lunch program. She claimed that these farmers care more about the money they are getting, and not the health of students.

(Original Samoan version of this story was published in the Nov. 1 edition of Samoa News/To’asavili)