Court action to be taken against food outlets

Six food business operators found to be contravening food safety legislation by the Department for Environmental Health within the Public Health Regulation Division will be arraigned in court.

These are a hawker from the Mosta Open Market, three operators in Sliema and Valletta, an operator of a food premises in Birkirkara and a business in San Gwann.

The department said that 528 improvement notices were issued. This notice is sent to all food business operators after an unannounced inspection is performed in their establishment by Environmental Health Officers.

The intention is to inform food operators about deficiencies found in their establishments and they are given a specific date to remedy these deficiencies. While deficiencies may vary, when major deficiencies are noted, legal action is taken.

The department said that 17 undertakings were also entered into during the period.

Undertakings are legal agreements between the food business operators and the Health Authority with the former agreeing on deadlines to remedy deficiencies in their premises.

Failure to abide with the agreed deadlines results in court action being initiated. The main deficiencies included structural defects, lack of hygiene, labelling irregularities and lack of food hygiene training.

Over 800 kilogrammes of expired food were sealed by the Health Inspectorate from a store in Birkirkara and subsequently destroyed. Similarly, 43 kilogrammes of expired goods were destroyed in Ħamrun and another four kilogrammes in Mosta. Another 185 kilogrammes of cheese/peacakes and pizza dough were destroyed from a manufacturer in San Gwann.

Ten emergency control orders were issued. These permanent or temporary orders are given to food business operators to stop part of their activities. Nine were issued to suppliers of water intended for human consumption, which following the necessary sampling and analysis, were found not complying with the criteria stipulated in the Water Intended for Human Consumption Regulations, 2009 and the other was served to a person found manufacturing foodstuffs in unlicensed premises.

An emergency prohibition order was served on the operator of premises 247, Carmel Street Birkirkara.

This order is issued when there is an imminent risk to public health and therefore this premises was closed down by the Health Authority.

In this case the order was lifted two days later since the operator abided with the instructions given by the Health Authority and the public health risk was abated.

The Health Inspectorate Services can be contacted on tel 2133 7333 between 7.30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., offices - 37/39, Rue D’Argens, Msida, e-mail complaints.ph@gov.mt .