Do you know any of these places?
Six closure orders were served on Irish food businesses during December 2022, according to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI).
One of these was for the popular Dublin pub Hole in the Wall, which is located beside Phoenix Park.
The enforcement orders were issued for breaches of food safety legislation, pursuant to the FSAI Act, 1998 and the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020 by Environmental Health Officers in the HSE and officers of the FSAI.
Four Closure Orders were served under the EU regulations on:
- Ballaghaderreen Grocery Store, Charlestown Road, Ballaghaderreen, Roscommon (Date served: 14/12/2022, Date lifted: 16/12/2022)
- Hole in the Wall (Closed area: the kitchen, side preparation areas and storage shed), Blackhorse Avenue, Cabra, Dublin 7 (Date served: 08/12/2022, Date lifted: 09/12/2022)
- Casey’s Pub (Closed area: kitchen, the store room off the kitchen and the part of the keg / bottle store room used for food production activities; a table with fryers and soup tureen), Raheenagh, Limerick (Date served: 02/12/2022)
- The Cosy Corner Outside Catering (Closed Area: Manufacture and distribution of filled baguettes, sandwiches and wraps for distribution to other premises), The Cosy Corner, Crossroads, Killygordon, Lifford, Donegal (Date served: 01/12/2022, Date lifted: 05/12/2022)
Two Closure Orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:
- The African Shop/Costello Stores, 87 Shandon Street, Cork (Date served: 29/12/2022, Date lifted: 06/01/2022)
- RBK Poultry Limited, Unit E4, Chapelizod Industrial Estate, Chapelizod Road, Dublin 10 (Date served: 23/12/2022)
Under the FSAI Act, a closure order is served where it is deemed that 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 is not complied with.
Under the EU regulations, closure orders are served where there is non-compliance with food legislation.
Closure orders can refer to the immediate closure of all or part of the food premises, or all or some of its activities.
The orders may be lifted when the premises has improved to the satisfaction of the authorised officer.
77 Enforcement Orders served on food businesses in 2022
Closure Orders & Prohibition Orders were issued by Environmental Health Officers in the @hselive, sea-fisheries protection officers in SFPA & officers of the FSAI. Please see: https://t.co/82oUB0DRSi #consumerprotection pic.twitter.com/HPwy3HzXsv
— FoodSafetyAuthority (@FSAIinfo) January 10, 2023
Some of the reasons for the closure orders in December include the following:
“Open bin of uncovered animal (meat) waste were stored outside a premises within easy access of vermin and pests; an establishment stored meat considered unfit for human consumption due to putrefaction, foreign body contamination and poor storage conditions; an unregistered meat food business was operating with no food safety procedures or records to fulfill meat traceability requirements; a freezer room had been switched off, leading to an interruption to the cold chain with frozen meat haphazardly stored alongside frozen animal by-product waste; previous inspection notes such as improving hygiene and cleaning practices were not followed; growth visible within a freezer storing baguettes; food workers were not wearing protective clothing when preparing sandwiches, baguettes and wraps; and rodent droppings noted on packet of foods on sale to the public and in the area where foods were re-packed for sale.”
In a statement, FSAI Chief Executive Dr Pamela Byrne said it is “disappointing that month after month, food inspectors find similar, basic and fundamental breaches of food law”.
“Through the hard work of our partner agencies and food inspectors in 2022, food businesses that disregarded the law and put consumer health at risk were stopped. However, this should not be happening,” she stated.
“Enforcement Orders are served on food businesses only when a risk to consumer health has been identified or where there are a number of ongoing breaches of food legislation.
“Food businesses should not be falling short on their legal requirements. They should adhere to food safety regulations at all times.”
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