A LIMERICK takeaway was one of 21 food premises that were served with closure orders by the Food Safety Authority last month.
Ginger Lillies Chinese restaurant on Mulgrave Street in Limerick City was served with a temporary closure order after inspectors found “grave and immediate danger” from rodent droppings under a sink, beside the cooking equipment, and on the floor between the chest freezer and shelving in the dry goods store.
The order was imposed on April 30 and lifted after a follow-up inspection on May 2.
April saw the highest rate of orders issued by the authority in any month this year, according to the Food Safety Authority.
Dr Pamela Byrne, FSAI chief executive, said that the high number of closure orders needing to be served in April is alarming and the highest recorded since November 2019.
“Amongst the reasons for the closure orders in April, a lack of adequate procedures to control pests was frequently cited. This resulted in evidence of widespread mice and cockroach activity, which leads to a serious risk of food being contaminated and poses a
grave and immediate danger to public health.
“Food businesses must ensure that their food business is properly pest proofed, and that they take effective action if there is a pest infestation,” she said, adding that “food safety fell off the list of priorities for quite a number of food businesses” last month.
“There are no excuses. Food safety is a legal requirement for all food businesses,” she said.
