The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) made 9 Closure Orders, 2 Improvement Orders and 1 Prohibition Order on food businesses for breaches of food safety legislation last month.
Some of the reasons for the Enforcement Orders in December include a dead rodent found trapped underneath a sink, raw sewage flowing through the back yard and at the rear door and a dead mouse on the floor behind the chest freezer.
Food safety officers also found mice activity in the wash-up area of a kitchen, evidence of a gnawed bag of chips, blood-stained rubber gloves placed in a wash hand basin and raw meat being prepared in the designated vegetable preparation area which was contaminated with chicken juices.
- December Enforcement Orders
- Five Closure Orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:
- King Kebab (restaurant/café), 10 Sean Costello Street, Irishtown, Athlone, Westmeath
- Officers’ Mess (restaurant/café), Air Corps Headquarters, Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnell, Dublin 22
- Hot Krispy Chicken Ltd (takeaway), Unit 2, Eagle Court, Main Street, Clonee, Meath
- Fu Jing Chinese Takeaway, Collon, Louth
- Our Lady’s Hospital (Closed area: Male Medical Ward Kitchen only), Athboy Road, Navan, Meath
- Four Closure Orders were served under the EC (Official Control of Foodstuffs) Regulations, 2010 on:
- Field’s Bakery (Closed area: Large storeroom to the left of the premises used for storage of food, food contact materials and food contact and equipment), Castletownshend Road, Carrigfadda, Skibbereen, Cork
- Natural Green (food processor), Unit C, Stadium Business Centre, Stadium Business Park, Ballycoolin, Dublin 15
- Mikes Pizza and Pasta (takeaway), Dublin Road, Ballinagh, Cavan
- Asian Wok, 35 O’Growney Street, Athboy, Meath
- Two Improvement Orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:
- The Silly Goose (public house), 3 Hanover Place, Cork
- One Prohibition Order was served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:
- U Polaka (retailer), Unit 16–17, Friary Business Park, Naas, Kildare
The FSAI said 109 Enforcement Orders were served on food businesses for breaches in food safety legislation in 2018, increasing by 58% in 2017 which saw 69 breaches.
Between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2018, food inspectors served 95 Closure Orders, 5 Improvement Orders and 9 Prohibition Orders on food businesses throughout the country.
The most common food safety issues they found were evidence of rodent infestation and rodent droppings, filthy conditions; failure to maintain correct temperatures of foodstuffs, a lack of knowledge of food safety by staff, unsuitable food storage facilities and improper or lack of water facilities for cleaning.
Dr Pamela Byrne, Chief Executive of the FSAI, said that the increase in Enforcement Orders in 2018 was unacceptable.
Dr Byrne said: “There are absolutely no excuses for negligent food practices. The types of reasons cited for Enforcement Orders are simple errors that should not be happening in any food business.
"Enforcement Orders are served on food businesses only when a serious risk to consumer health has been established or where there are a number of ongoing serious breaches of food legislation.
"Non-compliance by food businesses will not be tolerated and all breaches of food safety legislation will be dealt with the full extent of the law.”
