SEVEN CLOSURE ORDERS were served on food businesses in Ireland last month for breaching food safety laws.

The HSE also carried out successful prosecutions against three takeaways in July.

Chief Executive of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, Prof Alan Reilly, said that vigilance is always required in food safety. Legally, the onus is on food businesses to ensure that the food they serve and sell is safe for consumption and each closure order undermines the industry “as a whole”, he added.

“While most food businesses are committed to high standards for the health of their customers, this is not always the case.”

We’re urging food businesses to make sure that they have a food safety management system in place and that it is consulted on a regular basis and updated, where necessary, to ensure non-compliance issues and breaches of food safety legislation do not occur.

The closure orders served last month were to the following food businesses:

• Sur La Mer (restaurant), Station Road, Rosslare Strand, Co Wexford
• Monsoon Valley (restaurant), Unit 5, Building 2, Retail Park, Bundoran, Co Donegal
• The Swiss Cottage Kitchen (restaurant), 400 Swords Road, Santry, Dublin 9
• Golden Dragon Chinese Restaurant, 1st Floor, 88 Clanbrassil Street, Dundalk, Co Louth
• Ruposhi Indian Restaurant, 1 Whitworth Road, Dublin 9
• Heaven’s Cakes (food stall), trading at the English Market, Grand Parade, Cork
• The Coachman’s Tearooms (restaurant), Dublin Road, Dromiskin, Dundalk, Co Louth

All of the seven orders have since been lifted.

And the three prosecution carried out by the HSE in July were against:

• Omniplex Cinema Wexford (takeaway), Strandfield, Drinagh, Wexford
• Indian Taste (takeaway), 43 St Mary’s Terrace, Ballybough Road, Dublin 3
• The House Pizza (takeaway), 1 Shelbourne Terrace, Thomondgate, Limerick

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