The Food Safety Authority of Ireland has reported that three Closure Orders and one Prohibition Order were served on food businesses during April for breaches of food safety legislation. The Enforcement Orders were issued by Environmental Health Officers in the HSE.
Some of the reasons for the Enforcement Orders in April include: frozen food was labelled as fresh food and the majority of food had passed its use-by date or had no-use by date; a food business had failed to maintain the cold chain, having previously been warned of similar non-compliance in March 2022; while food was being prepared, there was no electricity on the premises and the boiler was broken; the filters of the canopy above the cooking equipment were unclean; high risk food was stored at unsafe temperatures, with cooked chicken stored at 11°C and garlic mayonnaise stored at 12.1°C; allergen information was either missing or inaccurate; hand washing facilities lacked hot water; food packaging was damaged and food was not protected from potential contamination; and food handlers were inadequately trained or supervised in food safety matters.
FSAI Cheif Executive Dr Pamela Byrne said: "The Enforcement Orders served represent a clear disregard for compliance with food legislation which has been put in place to protect consumers. Consumers have a right to safe food. Maintaining a clean premises with constant and reliable access to hot water and electricity is a basic, legal and mandatory requirement of all food businesses. Food businesses are also legally obliged to provide consumers with accurate written allergen information on all food, whether prepacked or not."
If you require Food Safety/HACCP training for your staff, a Food Safety/HACCP system specifically designed for your food business or Food Safety advice, please contact SafeHands by phone on 01-7979836 or mobile on 0873823223, email info@safehands.ie or visit our website https://www.safehands.ie.