Presence of duvets in food area of Dublin businesses amongst reasons for February closure orders

Over half of the FSAI closure orders were served to businesses in the capital.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) have released their monthly list of closure orders from the period of February 2024, of which there were 10 in Ireland.

Five were under the FSAI Act, 1998 and the other five were under the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020.

Six closure orders were served to the Dublin hospitality businesses Lusk Chinese Take Away, Strudel Artisan Bakery in Dún Laoghaire, Amerta Chinese Restaurant in Monkstown, Pure Indulgence in Clonee, as well as Hidden Dojo Asian Streetfood and Wakami Sushi & Asian in Phibsborough.

The other four closure orders were served to Hayashi restaurant and cafe in Offaly, Shinu George in Waterford, Offbeat Donuts in Cork and Coriander Nepalese and Indian Restaurant in Cork.

In the case of Hidden Dojo Asian Streetfood and Wakami Sushi & Asian in Phibsborough, which operate under one premises, their closure order was issued partly due to evidence of personal items in food areas - including blankets, a duvet, a mattress and cosmetics.

The two food businesses were also found to have unclean surfaces and a lack of clear food labelling.

Some of the other reasons for the closure orders being issued to the 10 food businesses in February include:

• Evidence of a rodent infestation
• The sale of food product with the claim 'nut free' in a premises that contains tree nuts and peanuts and has inadequate procedures in place to avoid cross-contamination
• Use of a domestic premises to provide off-site catering
• Uncovered cooked rice stored on a bin next to a container of raw chicken

Of the 10 closure orders issued, nine have since been lifted.

The order in place for Waterford's Shinu George, which was issued on 7 February over the use domestic premises to provide off-site catering, remains in place.

Chief Executive of the FSAI Dr Pamela Byrne said this of the closure orders in February, and about food safety in the hospitality business:

“Food safety is not a ‘nice to have’ in a food business. It’s a legal requirement and the law is there to protect consumer health. Consumers have a right to safe food and the food business owner is legally responsible for ensuring that the food they produce is safe to eat. Maintaining a clean premises that is fit for purpose, managing pest control, properly labelling produce and providing traceability information are mandatory legal  requirements for all food businesses. By neglecting to uphold basic food safety and hygiene standards, a business not only jeopardises the health of its customers, but also risks damaging its own reputation as a trustworthy food business.”

You can read the enforcement reports in their entirety here.

The article originally appeared on LovinDublin.

Read more:

• Status Orange warning issued over ‘persistent rain’ and ‘expected’ flooding
• Ireland ranks in top 10 'most depressing places in the world'
• Taoiseach admits “two wallops” for government after referendum rejection