Residents of the Mykolaiv region have already submitted their first complaints about school meals via the new chatbot

School lunch in Mykolaiv. Illustrative photo: NikVesti

The «Khvylka» chatbot, designed to monitor school meals, has already received three reports of issues with catering. Two of these have been forwarded to the relevant departments for investigation.

This was announced on 12 March during a briefing by Dmytro Havryliak, head of the Digital Development Department at the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration.

According to him, one report turned out to be invalid — the user was likely just testing how the new tool works. The other two reports were forwarded for further consideration.

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«The relevant authorities can assess them and then provide a response. People who have submitted complaints can track the status of their report in real time. If you go on the platform now and submit a report, you will be informed either that there is no issue regarding your complaint, or you will be told at what stage your report is and which department or commission is reviewing it,» added Dmytro Havryliak.

The official noted that the service was created to systematise complaints about the quality of school meals and make the process of reviewing them more transparent.

As a reminder, four institutions are currently connected to the «Khvylka» system:

• Antonivskyi Art Lyceum
• Berezkivskyi Art Lyceum
• Mykolaiv Special School №2
• Admiralskyi Mykolaiv Regional Economic Lyceum

To submit a complaint, users must log in using their mobile phone number. They must then select the school, specify the class and date of the incident, describe the problem and, if possible, attach a photograph of the food or products.

Catering for schoolchildren in Mykolaiv

On 9 December, NikVesti showed how private companies, including Prossecco 8, which had been awarded a contract by the municipal enterprise, were preparing meals for pupils in some schools in Mykolaiv. Parents reported that their children did not receive breakfast on Monday, and that food was only delivered after lunch. The video showed company staff cooking porridge right under a tent on the street in the rain.

Vitalii Kim, a member of the Mykolaiv City Council and head of the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration, responded to the incident. Following this, the Main Directorate of the National Police in Mykolaiv Region opened a criminal investigation into the violation of food preparation regulations for pupils.

It was only in the evening that the mayor, Oleksandr Sienkevych, responded to the video, calling the situation unacceptable and initiating an investigation. City councillor Tetiana Dombrovska described the scandal as a failure of the authorities and called for the dismissal of Deputy Mayor Anatolii Petrov and KOP Director Petro Vasheniak. Due to indications of violations in the area of public procurement, the State Audit Service has launched an investigation into the procurement of catering services for schools.

It is known that a private contractor was selected following criticism of the quality of school meals. In late November, the KOP selected Prossecco 8 to cater for some schools in December. During the open tender, the company was the sole participant and winner, with the cost of services amounting to 14,279,658 hryvnias.

According to YouControl, Prossecco 8 LLC was registered in Mykolaiv in 2023 with a capital of 1,000 hryvnias. The company is involved in catering, sports equipment hire, and the provision of sports facilities and hairdressing services. The owner is Iryna Stoieva, who is also linked to BBV 2021 LLC. Her activities there were the subject of a court ruling in 2023 due to breaches of alcohol and cigarette accounting regulations.

Earlier, Mykolaiv Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych explained that the catering business would be inspected over the course of a month. At a press conference, he noted that the contractor’s violations had been known as early as 8 December, but the incident had not been publicly addressed due to the municipal forum. Stoieva, the director of Prossecco 8, attributed the malfunctions to power supply issues: the generator failed to start, and the equipment broke down. Furthermore, the chef breached hygiene standards by leaving a thermal box open in the open air — he has already been penalised.