Gyeongnam Office of Education to Hold 'Breakfast Convenience Meal Competition' ... Seek Menus Using Local Agricultural and Specialty Products

The Gyeongnam Office of Education will hold the “2026 Breakfast Convenience Meal Competition” to offer schools across the province a wider variety of healthy breakfast options.

The provincial education office has been running a pilot program since September 2026 to provide breakfast convenience meals, a campaign promise made by Superintendent of Education Kwon Soon-gi.

Students at schools participating in the pilot program can receive foods that are easy to eat in the morning, such as fruit, bread, hard-boiled eggs, milk and juice, if they take part in a school morning program—such as reading, sports, arts or morning care—before regular classes begin.

The provincial education office announced on November 13 that it would hold the competition for students and local small business owners to develop menus better suited to schools and increase the program’s practical use and effectiveness.

Poster for the Gyeongsangnamdo Office of Education's 2026 Breakfast Convenience Meal Competition. [Image provided by the Gyeongsangnamdo Office of Education]

The competition has two divisions: a student division for students enrolled at high schools or universities in Gyeongsangnam-do, and a general division for representatives or employees of small businesses in the province.

Student participants may choose one of three categories: sandwiches, confectionery or bread. There are no menu restrictions for general participants.

However, all entries must use at least one agricultural or specialty product from Gyeongsangnam-do.

Applications will be accepted from November 16 through 20, 2026.

High school students wishing to participate must submit their applications through their schools via official correspondence.

University students and small business owners may submit their applications by email or address them to the Career Education Division’s Vocational Education 담당 at the provincial education office.

The provincial education office plans to hold preliminary rounds based on the standardized recipes submitted by participants and notify finalists individually on November 30, 2026.

The final round will be held on December 16, 2026, at the training building of Gimhae Life Science High School.

In each division, the organizers will select one grand prize winner, one first-place winner, one gold prize winner, two silver prize winners and around five bronze prize winners, and award certificates or plaques.

Application forms and further details are available in the notices on the provincial education office’s website or by contacting its Career Education Division.

“This competition brings together students’ creative ideas and local small business owners’ experience to develop breakfast convenience meal options suited to schools,” said Jeong Seon-hee, head of the Career Education Division. “As this is the first year, we will run it as a pilot. Next year, we will expand the competition and develop a variety of practical menus using agricultural and specialty products from Gyeongsangnam-do.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.