Town hall chiefs have issued an apology after a pork product was discovered in chocolate mousse being served to Muslim youngsters as part of their school dinner.
Bolton Council‘s school meals service which provides dinners to many of the borough’s school is now working closely with Bolton Council of Mosques and an investigation is under way.
The incident only involved Gaskell Community Primary School in Thomas Holden Street, Bolton, and as soon as the ingredient — pork gelatine — was spotted, the dessert was withdrawn.
Letters have been sent out to parents of children at the school apologising for the mistake and outlining what action will be taken.
A Bolton Council spokesman said: “We would like to sincerely apologise for any upset caused to parents and children by this mistake.
“This incident occurred at one school and we would like to stress that this was an isolated incident.
“A batch of frozen chocolate mousses was supplied by one of our food suppliers in place of the halal accredited frozen yoghurts that we had ordered.
“When it came to our notice that the mousses contained pork gelatine they were immediately withdrawn.
“We would also like to reassure the community that we are working closely with Bolton Council of Mosques and we are reviewing our own procedures to ensure that this does not happen again.
“We will ensure that any specific improvements that are identified are rolled out to all of our schools.”