22 November 2017
Every restaurant, café, and takeaway in Jersey must show their ‘Eat Safe’ food safety and hygiene standard rating from next month or face prosecution.
All Island businesses providing food directly to the public are inspected and awarded a food safety star rating from zero to five stars. The rating depends on how well they comply with the Jersey Food Law and the Food Standards Agency food safety code of practice. Until now, only businesses with three or more stars have been allowed to display their ratings. This was intended to encourage those with low ratings to improve their hygiene practices. From 1 December 2017, every business must display their rating.
The Eat Safe scheme is run by Environmental Health in the Department of the Environment. Director of Environmental Health, Stewart Petrie said ‘When we buy food from a business we expect the kitchen to be clean, free from vermin and for the food to be produced hygienically. Food poisoning of any type is incredibly unpleasant and for some people can result in life changing illness.
Compulsory display of the Eat Safe sticker allows people to make an informed choice before deciding where to eat.’
Inspections
Inspections are carried out every six months to five years, depending on the level of risk and compliance by businesses. If a company thinks it has improved since its last inspection, the owners can ask for a new (unannounced) inspection to be carried out by an officer from the Environmental Health team.
From June 2018, businesses such as home caterers and takeaways will have to point people to search for food safety and hygiene star ratings online.
gov.je