Vote with your feet over hygiene, says food authority

Irish people are being urged to exercise their rights as consumers to raise the standards of food safety and hygiene in food establishments.

As part of a European-wide campaign the Food Safety Authority of Ireland is asking people to "vote with their feet" and reject poor hygiene practices by going elsewhere.

The authority is also appealing to people to report poor practices to the relevant authorities.

The authority says last year it had 2,000 complaints from consumers about poor food-hygiene practices on premises. Many more consumers made complaints directly to environmental health officers in the health boards.

At the launch of the campaign, FSAI chief executive Dr Patrick Wall said the consequences of food-borne illness due to poor hygiene and handling practices should not be underestimated.

He said: "Food poisoning may cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea which may require people to take time off school or work.

"In some cases it can even result in death."

A leaflet, educating consumers on not accepting unfit food or poor hygiene, was published to accompany the campaign.

It defines unfit food as "food which appears to be contaminated with chemicals, contains a foreign object or is not served at the correct temperature".

Hygiene is poor, it says: "If a premises is visibly dirty, staff are handling unwrapped food and then handling money, or staff are handling raw meats or fish and then ready-to-eat foods."

The leaflet is available from the Safefood Helpline on 1850-404567.