Did you know? How we monitor food hygiene in the Arun district | Latest news

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Did you know? How we monitor food hygiene in the Arun district

Text: DID YOU KNOW? We regulate around 1300 local food businesses. Arun District Council logo bottom right corner. Image: features a person in a blue shirt, a plate of food with ingredients like garlic and chilli peppers. In front of the person are three checkboxes with smiley faces; happy, neutral, and sad, with the happy face highlighted. Our Environmental Health team oversees around 1,300 food businesses, ensuring they meet food safety and hygiene standards. They also issue the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) scores you often see displayed in shop windows. Impressively, over 98% of these businesses achieve a rating of three or above. In most cases, improvements are made without the need for formal enforcement.

When necessary, enforcement powers - such as improvement notices, premises closures, and court prosecutions - can be used, though this is rarely required.

Environmental Health Officers also have the authority to seize food deemed unfit for consumption. Last year, over a tonne of improperly prepared or processed food was seized from a business. The courts condemned the food, which has now been safely disposed of - protecting public health and removing it from the food chain.

Read more: Food and public health | Arun District Council

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