The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) today reported that seven Enforcement Orders were served on food businesses during the month of June for breaches of food safety legislation, pursuant to the FSAI Act, 1998 and the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020. The Enforcement Orders were issued by Environmental Health Officers in the Health Service Executive (HSE).
Three Closure Orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:
- Board (Closed area: The Upper storey of the building) (service sector), 29 Clanbrassil Street Upper, Dublin 8
- Mercury Eastern European Food (retailer), Unit 25, Midleton Business Enterprise Park, Dwyer Road, Midleton, Cork
- Giraffe Childcare Limited, Elm Park, Merrion Road, Dublin 4
Two Closure Orders were served under the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020 on:
- Chinese Gourmet Restaurant (Closed area: the use of the outdoor timber shed in the back yard of the restaurant for the storage/ handling of any open food or food contact materials), The Square, Oldcastle, Meath
- Chrysanthemum (restaurant/café), Unit 1 Old Orchard Inn, Butterfield Avenue, Rathfarnham, Dublin 14
Two Prohibition Orders were served under the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020:
- Johnson Best Food African Take Away, 86 Summerhill, Dublin 1
- The Roadhouse (public house), Clongowney, Mullingar, Westmeath
Also, during the months of May and June two prosecutions were taken by the HSE in relation to:
- Mean Greens Vegan Kitchen Stall, Ballysax Hills, The Curragh, Kildare
- Griolladh 2 Stall, Ballysax Hills, The Curragh, Kildare
Some of the reasons for the Enforcement Orders in June include: two mouse carcasses under a sink and under a toilet; a significant amount of rodent droppings under a sink; evidence of rat infestation; inadequate pest proofing; flies walking on cooked chicken; a dead rodent under pallets on the shop floor; raw meat packaging used to store cooked chicken pieces; mould on walls and ceilings; food prepared and handled in a kitchen which was subject to a Closure Order; inability to establish traceability for frozen raw meat; lack of a food safety culture.
Dr Pamela Byrne, Chief Executive, FSAI, emphasised that food businesses have a legal obligation to comply with food safety legislation in the interest of public health.
“Consumers have a right to safe food. Under food law, it is the legal responsibility of food businesses to ensure that the food they sell to the consumer is safe to eat. If anyone experiences unfit food, poor hygiene standards or notices a breach of food law in a food business, we encourage them to contact us via our online complaint form at www.fsai.ie/makeitbetter. Reporting inappropriate and unsafe food practices provides us with information that we can act upon. Food safety legislation is put in place to protect the health of consumers and to uphold the standards of the food industry. We strongly encourage food business operators to continuously improve their food safety standards via regular training, availing of online resources, as well as promoting a strong culture of food safety within their businesses.”
Details of the food businesses served with Enforcement Orders are published on the FSAI’s website at www.fsai.ie. Closure Orders and Improvement Orders will remain listed in the enforcement reports on the website for a period of three months from the date of when a premises is adjudged to have corrected its food safety issue, with Prohibition Orders being listed for a period of one month from the date the Order was lifted.