Athlone takeaway among food businesses served with closure orders

Closure orders were served on three food premises during November prompting the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) to appeal to businesses to take particular care over the busy Christmas period.

The Roma Grill takeaway in The Crescent, Boyle, Co Roscommon and the Clonark Home Cooked Foods bakery in Clonark, Cornafulla, Athlone, Co Roscommon, received closure orders under the FSAI Act.

The closures are served where it is deemed there is, or there is likely to be, a “grave and immediate danger to public health” at or in the premises, or where an improvement order has not been complied with.

Closure orders can refer to the immediate closure of all or part of the food premises, or all or some of its activities.

The order against Clonark Home Cooked Foods was subsequently lifted.

Kebab Zone on Main Street, Ballindine, Co Mayo was served a closure order under EC regulations. These orders are issued where there is a non-compliance with food legislation.

Specifics of each case were not released by the FSAI.

Elsewhere, an EC prohibition order - again relating to non-compliance with food legislation - was issued to retailer Salius Milasius at 68 Shannon Park, Edgeworthstown, Co Longford.

Dr Pamela Byrne, FSAI chief executive, responded to the latest round of orders by urging food businesses to adopt robust safety management systems.

“Particularly with the busy Christmas festive period upon us,” she said.

“To ensure that they can cope with this extra demand, food businesses must be familiar with the main factors that are easily preventable which can cause food-borne illness.”

These include poor hygiene, inappropriate storage or inadequate refrigeration, inadequate cooking or re-heating, cross-contamination from raw to cooked food, contaminated raw ingredients and inadequately trained or supervised staff.

“Food service businesses will be working flat out to meet the current Christmas demands. Therefore, special attention must be given to the supervision and training of new staff, both part-time and full time, in all aspects of food safety.”