Kremenchuk Mayor Causes Scandal Over Wilted Tomatoes in School Lunch

During an inspection of one of the city schools, the mayor of Kremenchuk, Vitalii Maletskyi, decided to personally taste the tomatoes prepared for the children. After tasting the vegetable, the city leader immediately stated that it was soggy. He then went to the kitchen, demanded to see the entire batch of tomatoes, and directed an immediate complaint to the supplier. This is reported by Hlavkom, citing the mayor’s posts on Instagram.

Besides the quality of the vegetables, Vitalii Maletskyi noticed a difference in weight between the control portion of the salad and the portions given to the children, and he asked how much food the students leave after lunch.

Mayor of Kremenchuk Vitalii Maletskyi holds a control portion of the dish.

Screenshot: Facebook / Vitalii Maletskyi

On the children's plates, the vegetables are cut differently than in the control portion that Maletskyi placed in the center of the table for comparison. If the vegetables in the control dish are cut into smaller pieces, in the children's portions they are cut more roughly.

Control portion in the center of the table and the dishes received by the pupils.

Screenshot: Facebook / Vitalii Maletskyi

During the inspection of school cafeterias, Mayor Maletskyi drew attention to the amount of food that children leave after lunch. According to him, in some places portions remain almost untouched.

Leftovers after lunch in the school cafeteria.

Screenshot: Instagram / Vitalii Maletskyi

Maletskyi asked for a fork and personally tasted one of the remaining portions. He praised the potatoes and pork, but had remarks about the tomatoes. “The potatoes are fine. The pork is fine. The tomato is a bit soggy,” he said.

The mayor also asked to show the tomatoes used for preparing the salad. He drew attention to several mashed vegetables and suggested informing the supplier about it.

🍽🥛During the inspection of the school, the Mayor of Kremenchuk Vitalii Maletskyi compared the children’s lunches with the control portion—the difference was striking. Moreover, while investigating why students leave food, the mayor personally came across soggy and damaged tomatoes. The controversial vegetables forced the city leader to go to the kitchen and hold a review.

— Hlavkom (@GLAVCOM_UA) September 18, 2026

Maletskyi noted that the city plans to determine why children leave food and which specific dishes they do not finish. He also said they will determine what can be changed in school meals.

In the comments under the post, readers’ opinions were divided. One commenter noted that cafeteria workers do not determine what products are delivered to them and do not compose the menu.

Comments from users under Vitalii Maletskyi’s post about school meals.

Screenshot: Instagram / Vitalii Maletskyi

Another user suggested that children leave food because of its taste. She shared her own experience with her child’s school meals and gave examples of dishes that, in her words, were prepared improperly.

Comments from users under Vitalii Maletskyi’s post about school meals.

Screenshot: Instagram / Vitalii Maletskyi

At the same time, some commentators supported the mayor’s actions. In particular, one user called such an inspection the mayor’s work and positively assessed his attention to school meals.

Comments from users under Vitalii Maletskyi’s post about school meals.

Screenshot: Instagram / Vitalii Maletskyi

Another commenter expressed a critical view of free meals for all students, noting that her son does not eat at school, but meals for him continue to be prepared.

Comments from users under Vitalii Maletskyi’s post about school meals.

Screenshot: Instagram / Vitalii Maletskyi

Note that this is not the first time this academic year that questions about school meals have arisen on social networks. In Bukovyna, after photos of lunches at a school in Chernivtsi appeared, an official inspection was appointed, and in other districts of the region—unscheduled monitoring visits. The Department of Education then stated that such a view and quality of food greatly do not satisfy them.

A similar situation occurred in Ivano-Frankivsk region. A post by the Krychivetsky Lyceum about the first day of free meals for students sparked a controversy on social networks due to the appearance of the dishes and the tableware.