Food scandal in Mykolaiv schools: suspects served with suspicion notices

Director of the utility company Petro Vasheniak during searches on 12 December 2025. Photo from NikVesti sources

The persons involved in the scandal over the organisation of catering for schoolchildren in Mykolaiv have been served with suspicions. These are the head of the company «Prossecco 8» Iryna Stoieva and the director of the municipal production enterprise of the city council Petro Vasheniak.

This information NikVesti was confirmed by the prosecutor's office of Mykolaiv region.

They are charged with misappropriation and embezzlement of property on a particularly large scale or by prior conspiracy (Article 191(4) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine), as well as violation of sanitary rules and regulations for the prevention of infectious diseases and mass poisoning (Article 325(1) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

The editorial office of NikVesti received several photos taken on 12 December during investigative actions carried out by officers of the Strategic Investigations Department of the National Police together with investigators of the Main Department of the National Police in Mykolaiv region under the procedural guidance of the Mykolaiv District Prosecutor's Office with the involvement of specialists from the Main Department of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection in Mykolaiv region.

Investigative actions at the premises of the defunct restaurant «Ukrainian Borsch», which PROSECCO-8 LLC had indicated during the tender as the location of their production facilities. Photo from NikVesti sources.

In total, 8 authorised searches were conducted at the production facilities, legal and actual addresses of the customer, supplier (Mykolaiv City Council Education Department, catering department of educational institutions, LLC «Prossecco 8») and at the suspects' residences.

Police officers take samples of food from LLC «Prosecco 8» during investigative actions on 12 December. Photo by NikVesti.

Food storage conditions at «PROSSECCO 8» on 12 December 2025. Photo by NikVesti

Food storage conditions at «PROSSECCO 8» on 12 December 2025. Photo by NikVesti

Earlier, on 16 December, NikVesti reported that after a scandal with catering in Mykolaiv schools, the MPE-C unilaterally terminated the contract with «Prosecco 8» due to violations of the food supply schedule and violations of sanitary standards.

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Catering for Mykolaiv schoolchildren

On 9 December, NikVesti showed the process of providing some of the city's schools with food prepared by the private company «Prossecco 8», which received a catering contract from the municipal enterprise. Parents of the children said that they did not receive breakfast on Monday, and the food was delivered only in the afternoon.

The footage showed the company's employees cooking porridge outside under a tent in the rain.

Vitalii Kim, a deputy of the Mykolaiv City Council and head of the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration, responded to the scandal. After that, the Main Department of the National Police of Mykolaiv region opened a criminal investigation into violations of the rules for preparing food for city schoolchildren.

Only in the evening did the mayor, Oleksandr Sienkevych, respond to the video. The mayor called the situation unacceptable and initiated an inspection.

In her turn, Tetiana Dombrovska, a member of the Mykolaiv City Council, called the scandal with the new catering for schoolchildren a failure of the authorities. She demanded the dismissal of Vice Mayor Anatoliy Petrov and Director of the enterprise Petro Vasheniak.

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The State Audit Service has launched an audit of the procurement of catering services for Mykolaiv's educational institutions due to signs of violations of public procurement laws.

It should be noted that the Mykolaiv City Hall decided to engage a private contractor after a public outcry over the quality of school meals. At the end of November, the municipal enterprise MPE-C chose the company «Prosecco 8», which will deliver food to some of the city's schools in December. During the open tender «PROSSECCO 8» became the only participant and winner of the tender for catering services. The price of the services was 14 million 279 thousand 658 hryvnias.

Since the morning of 12 December, employees of the Strategic Investigations Department of Mykolaiv Region, together with the police, have been conducting searches at «Prossecco 8», the Department of Education and the catering company.

The searches were conducted as part of criminal proceedings under Article 191 (4) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — misappropriation or embezzlement of property on a large scale or committed by an organised group.

The searches began in the morning of 12 December. Photo: NikVesti

The searches began in the morning of 12 December. Photo: NikVesti

Who is the company that received ₴14 million for school meals connected to?

According to the YouControl system, the company «Prossecco 8», which was selected as a subcontractor, was registered in Mykolaiv in 2023 and has a registered capital of one thousand hryvnias. The company's activities are multifaceted: it provides mobile catering services, rents goods for sports and recreation, operates sports facilities, provides services to hairdressers and beauty salons, and more. The company is owned by Iryna Stoieva.

NikVesti found out that Iryna Stoieva is also associated with another organisation — LLC «BBV 2021». The Register of Court Decisions contains a court ruling of 2023 on bringing her to administrative responsibility for violating the statutory procedure for making payments in the field of trade, catering and services. Iryna Stoieva is listed in the document as the manager of LLC «BBV 2021». The case concerned an unaccounted-for excess of alcohol and cigarettes in a cafe in the Zavodskyi district of Mykolaiv.

The YouControl system indicates that the head of this Mykolaiv-based limited liability company «BBV 2021» is Borys Berestnev, who is the son of the head of the «Proposal» faction in the Mykolaiv City Council and the head of the Ingul District Administration, Hanna Remennikova.

It should be noted that Hanna Remennikova's family owns two popular restaurants in Mykolaiv: «Daily» and «Daily Sport». One of them, as the editorial board of NikVesti found out, employs Iryna Stoieva.

The decision to involve a private company in the organisation of meals for children in schools was previously commented on by the mayor of Mykolaiv, Oleksandr Sienkevych. In his telegram channel, the mayor said that within a month, the city authorities would check the effectiveness of catering.

Press conference on the incident with school meals: key statements

The mayor of Mykolaiv, Oleksandr Sienkevych, stated that they knew about the contractor's violations in the preparation and delivery of school meals as early as Monday, 8 December, but did not publicly respond to this because he was attending a municipal forum that day.

According to the mayor, some schools refused to accept the food, and some of the prepared meals were not sent from the company at all «Prossecco 8».

When asked by journalists why Oleksandr Sienkevych reacted to the incident only after the video was published NikVesti, the mayor explained that «he was physically unable to do so».

In turn, Iryna Stoieva, director of «Prossecco 8», whose company was supposed to provide catering for children in Mykolaiv schools, explained that on the first day, due to problems with the power outage, there was a production failure.

According to Stoieva, the company experienced force majeure. Due to the lack of electricity, the generator failed to work and the equipment was out of order.

In addition, she said that sanitary standards were violated by the cook himself, who decided to open the thermobox in the open air and mix the couscous. He has already been punished for this.