The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) announced on Wednesday that there were nine closure orders and one prohibition order served on food businesses during the month of February for breaches of food safety legislation such as cross-contamination due to the condition of the staff toilet and a dead rodent found near a kitchen.
Five of the enforcement orders were issued for premises in Dublin including a popular grocery store and café on Capel Street, Super Asia Food and White Rabbit Café, which was ordered to close due to an "active rodent infestation".
The inspector found "rodent droppings" and saw “gaps and possible entry points for rodents”.
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Il Capo, an Italian takeaway pizza shop on Talbot Street, was also ordered to close after rodent droppings and a "dead mouse" were found by an inspector.
The remaining enforcement orders were issued for numerous reasons including a water leak flowing into the food storage and preparation area and flooding a nearby carpet.
In another instance, E. coli was detected in parsley mayonnaise, beetroot hummus, rocket pesto and chicken and chorizo bap, indicating that faecal pathogens may also be present or that poor hygiene practices occurred.
Food debris and black mould were found on surfaces, indicating inadequate cleaning procedures and frozen meats were stored for an unknown duration and no traceability information could be found, in another instance.
No monitoring of food temperatures that are critical to food safety, with sausages and rice stored at potentially harmful temperatures and a dead rodent was found near the kitchen, indicating inadequate pest control procedures, an extraction hood dripping grease down the canopy and there were no handwashing facilities for staff.
Where was closed?
Five Closure Orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:
- Super Asia Food (retailer), 27 Capel Street, Dublin 1
- White Rabbit (restaurant/café), 27 Capel Street, Dublin 1
- Il Capo (takeaway), 62 Talbot Street, Dublin 1
- Cork Oriental Supermarket Ltd (Closed area: the kitchen and kitchen storage area) (restaurant/café), 12 Daltons Avenue, Cork
- Homesavers (Closed activity: To cease the sale, packaging and/or processing of all food products on the premises) (retailer), Unit 4, Mile Height Retail Park, Tralee, Kerry
Four Closure Orders were served under the European Union Regulations on:
- East Oriental Take Out, Unit 5, Block C, Barbazon Hall, Ardee Street, Dublin 8
- Top Oil Gala (Closed Area: the food service area/deli) (retailer), McKee Avenue, Finglas, Dublin 11
- Dook's Fine Foods (restaurant/takeaway), The Cross, Fethard, Tipperary
- Gianny's (takeaway), St Mary's Road, Edenderry, Offaly
One Prohibition Order was served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:
- Fish Seafood Deli Ltd, Carbery, Enterprise Park, Skibbereen, Cork
Dr Pamela Byrne, Chief Executive, FSAI, said maintaining clean premises is essential and obligatory for every food business.
“Consumers must be able to trust that the food they are being served is safe to eat and it is unacceptable that some food businesses fail to fulfil this duty,” Dr Byrne said.
“Storage and food preparation areas must be properly cleaned and maintained to avoid potential contamination of food.
“It is also important that businesses have proper pest control procedures in place and that they are regularly checking that there are no pests in their premises.”
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