8 food businesses in Ireland served with closure orders due to ‘filthy’ conditions

Eight food businesses in Ireland were served with closure orders last month.

The businesses were said to be in "filthy conditions" and not up to standard of the FSAI. Some of the reasons for the Enforcement Orders included on the FSAI website were:

"No allergen information available for customers; dead and live crawling insects found on the premises; a live rat emanating from the drain when the tap at the kitchen sink was switched on; no wash hand basin in raw meat preparation area; food preparation in a storage shed; dirt and black mould engrained on chopping boards and preparation block."

The closure orders were served to: Two Closure Orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:

• Echemas Trading Store (retailer), 11 Upper Gerald Griffin Street, Limerick
• Khyber Garden (restaurant), 11 Market Street, Kells, Meath

Six Closure Orders were served under the EC (Official Control of Foodstuffs) Regulations, 2010 on:

• Oldcourt East Bakery, 1 Main Street, Castlelyons, Cork
• Bengal Indian Foodstall, Trading at Semple Stadium, Thurles, Tipperary
• Kings (takeaway), Unit 8, Bayside Shopping Centre, Bayside, Sutton, Dublin 13
• Super Ketones (retailer), 76 Prospect Hill, Galway
• Mint Leaf (restaurant), 157 Drumcondra Road Lower, Drumcondra, Dublin 9
• Baby Pure Water Limited (packaged water), Ardbraccan, Navan, Meath

Dr. Pamela Byrne, Chief Executive of FSAI said:  "It is very concerning to see that the reasons for Closure Orders this month were mainly due to filthy conditions and unhygienic practices. "It is essential that food businesses have a strong food safety and hygiene culture in their business, which can be achieved through ongoing training of all members of their team. Failure to recognise the importance of food safety in a food business reflects poorly not only on that business, but also on the entire food industry.”