Two restaurants ordered to close for hygiene breaches

FOOD safety chiefs last month ordered two restaurants to close for breaching hygiene laws — including one told a year ago to clean up its act.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has also shut the delicatessen of a shop in Co Cavan for breaching cleanliness regulations.

Of the three premises closed by the FSAI last month, Co Cork’s Red Sun Chinese restaurant in Tower, Blarney, was last year served with an improvement order requiring the owner to comply with hygiene rules.

But on September 13, a closure order was served on Dan Dan Hong, requiring the place to shut immediately for breaching hygiene laws.

Such orders are only served when there is or is likely to be a grave and immediate danger to public health at the premises.

As of yesterday afternoon, the order remained in force at the Chinese takeaway, as was a similar bar on trade at the deli section only of Sheridan’s shop in Main Street, Bawnboy, Cavan.

On September 11, the FSAI served a closure order on the Bagel Bar in South Great George’s Street, Dublin 2, but it reopened two days later after satisfying food safety inspectors.

The FSAI also served prohibition notices to stop four butchers selling beef with spinal cord from cattle aged more than 24 months.

Yesterday, FSAI chief executive John O’Brien insisted food businesses had to implement proper controls.

“Standards must not be permitted to slip to a point where consumers’ health may be put at risk,” he said.

“Enforcement officers only resort to using these powers when standards have fallen to an unacceptable level. We are not out to persecute food operators.”

The butcher’s shops ordered to stop selling the beef were: Doherty’s in Clonmany, Donegal; Food Experience in the Wine Street car park in Sligo; and Richie Doyle and Sons in Redmond Square and South Main Street, both in Wexford. The orders were lifted within days of being served as all four butchers removed the product from sale.

The 24-month rule was brought in to stop BSE, commonly called mad cow disease, from getting into the food chain.

Yesterday, the European Union raised the age limit so butchers can sell beef with spinal cord from cattle aged up to 30 months.

* Anyone wanting to report food hygiene lapses can ring the FSAI on 1890-336677.