Sixty-two children from three Fergana kindergartens (No. 2, No. 58, and No. 61) have been hospitalized with a diagnosis of acute diarrheal disease of alimentary etiology. The Fergana province health department said Monday.
Children were reportedly admitted to the Fergana Province Infectious Diseases Hospital on Saturday evening with symptoms including fever, abdominal pain, weakness, nausea, and diarrhea. The children's condition is currently assessed as satisfactory.
Child nutrition at the kindergartens may have been outsourced to Garden Catering Trade, a company based in Kuvasay. Parents complained that information about their children's conditions is being concealed, and their messages in Telegram groups are being deleted.
"My 6-year old son attends the public kindergarten No. 2 in Fergana. After returning home on February 20th, he developed a fever and diarrhea. We took him to the clinic. We saw other children who had returned from other kindergartens with illnesses. My son is now being treated at the Fergana Children's Hospital," said one mother.
The province health department reported that sanitary and epidemiological service specialists are testing food samples collected from kindergarten cafeterias and the company supplying the food.
The Ministry of Preschool and School Education said it launched a probe into the situation.
Children's Ombudsperson Surayo Rakhmonova said that she had taken the situation under control. A province representative of the ombudsman has visited the site.
In September 2025, more than 1,000 children in state-run kindergartens were hospitalized with symptoms of food poisoning in the Buka, Pskent, Bekabad, Akkurgan, and Kuyichirchik districts of the Tashkent province. The kindergartens were served by three outsourcing catering companies that purchased fermented milk products from the Akkurgan-based company Shark Milk Product. A criminal case was opened for violating sanitary laws, and seven officials from the dairy manufacturer and the outsourcing companies were detained.
