Zero tolerance for unhygienic food

JEDDAH/RIYADH: Jeddah Municipality has closed down a Pizza Hut outlet near Darrajah (Cycle overpass) and the Ghazi Al-Husaini Restaurant in Aziziyah for not following regulations. The action was taken during routine inspection of food shops and restaurants on Sunday.
This comes in the wake of the municipality's health and safety campaign that began earlier this year and during which it shuttered several restaurants for violating health and safety rules.
The outlets which were shut on Sunday committed several violations. They included a low level of hygiene; presence of insects in the kitchen and washrooms; unhygienic food storage; poor personal hygiene of workers; workers not wearing proper uniforms, gloves, masks and head covers. Drainage holes were found open, while some workers had dirty hands and nails. Some were even wearing rings and watches while kneading the dough.
The officials said the municipality will not tolerate any irregularities and action will be taken against violators.
Meanwhile, in the capital, 40 warehouses were shut down and more than 400,000 expired food items were seized during an inspection conducted by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The inspections covered southern Riyadh districts of Dar-Al-Baidha, Aziziyah and Hair, according to officials.
The illegal workers at the raided places are accused of re-labeling expired products in order to re-sell them in local markets. The workers typically collect the expired items from shops, store them in unhygienic conditions and repack them to be sold again.
The expat worker in charge of the operation and his accomplices were arrested and an investigation is under way.
During the raids, the inspectors also closed a factory where they found 75,000 packets of counterfeit detergent brands, including cakes of soap, Dettol and cosmetics.
At the Dar-Al-Baidha warehouse, the team found counterfeit auto spare parts. Additionally, 3,000 kinds of chocolates, sweets and juices unfit for human consumption were also seized.
The inspectors also found 350,000 electrical items that did not comply with the standards and specifications. The items included sockets and lamps, on which the country of origin was changed from China to Germany.
Meanwhile, a British food security and safety firm stated that up to 14 percent of all travelers fall ill while on holiday. “Families with young children and the elderly should be especially careful. In many tropical destinations, the incidence of travelers’ illnesses is even higher and can reach 50 percent of all travelers. It is also a fact that 75 percent of all illnesses suffered by travelers are food related.”