THE FOOD SAFETY Authority (FSAI) was busy last month, serving 16 enforcement orders on food businesses in July, double the amount served in June.

The FSAI said they closed down nine restaurants and served seven prohibition orders (which force food businesses to withdraw unsafe or illegal food from the market) last month for breaches of food safety legislation.

Closure orders

Four closure orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:

• The Blueberry Restaurant, Moyvalley, Kildare
• The Larder (restaurant), 8 Parliament Street, Dublin 2
• Red Parrot (public house), 57-58 Lower Dorset Street, Dublin 1
• New Millennium Chinese Restaurant, 51 South King Street, Dublin 2

Five closure orders were served under the EC (Official Control of Foodstuffs) Regulations, 2010 on:

• Creedon’s Hotel (Closed area: Main kitchen and rear-yard store room), Inchigeela, Macroom, Cork
• Kebab Bites (take-away), Unit 4, Redmond Square, Wexford
• Sur La Mer (restaurant), Rosslare Strand, Wexford
• Great Stuff Caterers (Storage shed & garage only) (Under appeal) (distributor/transporter), N25, Cork Road, Midleton, Cork
• Pizza Palace (restaurant), Temple House, Templeshannon, Enniscorthy, Wexford

Four prohibition orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on:

• North West Shellfish Ltd. (aquaculture production site), Upper Carrick, Carrigare, Letterkenny, Donegal
• New Millennium Chinese Restaurant, 51 South King Street, Dublin 2
• Red Parrot (public house), 57-58 Lower Dorset Street, Dublin 1
• Pizza Max (take- away), 25 Annamoe Terrace, Dublin 7

Three prohibition orders were served under the EC (Official Control of Foodstuffs) Regulations, 2010 on:

• Meadow Grove Stores (cash and carry), 95 Meadow Park Estate, Ringmahon Road, Blackrock, Cork
• Mr Bryan Allen, Food Stall operating at Semple Stadium, Thurles, Tipperary
• Tom McCall (cash and carry), Crosslow, Tullow, Carlow

A successful prosecution was brought against John Johnson, Bimdoc Cash & Carry, Business Centre, Jamestown Business Park, Jamestown Road, Finglas, Dublin 11.

Prof. Alan Reilly, chief executive of the FSAI said this was another high monthly for enforcement orders, “which is a new and worrying record”.

We warn food businesses to ensure that the food they serve and sell is safe to eat, and obtained from reputable suppliers. It is vital that all batches of food are fully traceable and labelled correctly, and that food businesses know it has been produced and stored safely and hygienically. The integrity of the food supply chain relies on every food business playing its part.

If any food business owner is unsure of what is required of them by law, they can contact the FSAI advice line on 1890 336677 or visit its website www.fsai.ie.

Read: People buying fewer frozen burgers after horse meat scandal>

More: ‘Shocking’ number of food businesses served with closure orders in May>