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Daily Express
01-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Express
Tawau students lead food safety fight in Germ Buster Challenge
Published on: Tuesday, July 01, 2025 Published on: Tue, Jul 01, 2025 Text Size: TAWAU: More than 360 primary students from across Tawau stepped up as health heroes during the Germ Buster Challenge Sabah 2025, held at SK Tanjung Batu Keramat on June 14. The event, organised by the Sabah State Health Department with the Tawau District Education and Health Offices, aimed to raise awareness on food hygiene and safety issues often linked to food poisoning in schools. 'Food poisoning is preventable. By educating students early, we can break the cycle,' said Deputy State Health Director, Sitti Aralas, who officiated the event. Through fun and interactive activities like the food safety-themed Explorace and hygiene talks, students learned the importance of proper food handling, clean eating environments, and simple habits like look, smell, and taste before eating. SK Tanjung Batu Keramat emerged as the overall winner, followed by SK Jambatan Putih and SK Holy Trinity. Organisers hope the initiative empowers students, especially in Tawau, to be agents of change in promoting safe and healthy eating practices at school. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Borneo Post
20-06-2025
- Health
- Borneo Post
Germ Buster Challenge promotes food safety awareness among students
The participants of the State-Level Germ Buster Challenge Programme 2025. TAWAU (June 20): Food poisoning is a recurring issue in schools nationwide, caused by various factors. These include food handlers who do not practice personal hygiene, unclean premises, and unsafe food handling and storage. Additionally, the lack of the 'Look, Smell and Taste' practice among students before consuming food also contributes to such incidents. On June 14, the Food Safety and Quality Division of the Sabah State Health Department, in collaboration with the Tawau District Health Office and the Tawau District Education Office, organized the State-Level Germ Buster Challenge Programme 2025 at Sekolah Kebangsaan Tanjung Batu Keramat, Tawau. The event was officiated by deputy director of the Sabah State Health Department, Sitti Aralas A total of 361 students and 28 teachers from 11 primary schools in the Tawau district participated in the programme. According to Sitti Aralas, this programme targets primary school students with the main objective of educating them on food hygiene and safety through interactive and fun activities to effectively convey the message. The two main components of the programme were an Explorace Competition themed around food hygiene and safety, as well as a food safety and hygiene talk. The challenging and informative Explorace competition crowned Sekolah Kebangsaan Tanjung Batu Keramat as the champion, while Sekolah Kebangsaan Jambatan Putih secured second place, and Sekolah Kebangsaan Holy Trinity took third place. The Food Safety and Quality Division of the Sabah State Health Department hopes that through this programme, awareness and knowledge among school communities will be enhanced regarding the importance of personal hygiene, cleanliness and food safety to prevent food poisoning incidents in schools.
The Star
20-06-2025
- Health
- The Star
Germ Buster Challenge makes hygiene lessons fun for Sabah schoolkids
KOTA KINABALU: To tackle recurring cases of food poisoning in schools, the Sabah Health Department has launched an innovative programme aimed at educating pupils about food safety and hygiene through fun and games. The Germ Buster Challenge 2025 at SK Tanjung Batu Keramat in Tawau last weekend brought together 361 students and 28 teachers from 11 primary schools across the district. Organised by the Health Department's Food Safety and Quality Division, in collaboration with the Tawau district Health and Education offices, the programme featured activities that reinforced the importance of food safety, particularly in school settings. 'Food poisoning in schools is often caused by a mix of factors, from poor hygiene among food handlers to unclean premises and unsafe food storage," said state deputy Health director Sitti Aralas, who launched the programme. "But it also comes down to awareness. 'Through this challenge, we aim to instil basic food safety habits in children from a young age in a fun and memorable way." Two core components of the event were a food safety and hygiene talk and Explorace, an interactive event with challenges linked to hygiene and food safety. The Explorace saw SK Tanjung Batu Keramat emerge as overall champion, followed by SK Jambatan Putih in second place and SK Holy Trinity in third. Sitti said the event highlighted not the need for clean food handling in school canteens and vendors, as well as the importance of encouraging children to practise 'look, smell and taste' before consuming food. 'This is about empowering students with knowledge that can help them stay healthy and even potentially save lives. Good hygiene habits start young,' Sitti added. The organisers intend to help curb food-borne illnesses and promote a culture of cleanliness and awareness in school communities through such proactive education programmes.
