Crossmolina food outlet owner in court

Owner of Crossmolina food-outlet in court


THE owner of a Crossmolina fast-food restaurant appeared before Ballina District Court last week for charges brought against him by the HSE.
Mohammed Ibrahim Khan, the owner of ‘Pizza House’, on Bridge Street, Crossmolina, was in court for offences including the failure to provide adequate wash basins on the premises, and not ensuring that food handlers had adequate food-preparation training.
Ms Karen McTigue from the Health Service Executive, told the court that on inspecting the premises on October 17, 2014, she found there was no hot water at a wash basin, there was no wash basin in another room and there were no hand-drying facilities in a staff area or the public toilet. In the food-preparation area, a hand-drying facility was located over clean cutlery, and Ms McTigue said she found no evidence of a food-safety management system adopted at the premises.
Going on to explain what this meant, Ms McTigue said she observed raw chicken being stored on a colander placed on a chopping board designated for vegetables. The juice from the chicken was subsequently seeping through the colander onto the board. She also observed raw chicken being cut on a board designated for cooked meats.
A separate room which was also used for food preparation was also being used for storage of drinks and other items.
Other food-safety concerns included beef burgers thawing in a cold room with no indication of the date they were taken out of a freezer; flies in a room where chicken and other foods were being prepared; no temperature monitoring; and an open window with no fly screen. The cleaning of the food preparation areas was also not properly managed.
Ms McTigue told the court that there was inadequate supervision and training, and that one food worker had no food training and had been left alone to cook food.

Improvements
The day before last Tuesday’s court sitting, Ms McTigue revisited the premises to assess whether improvements had been made. She told the court that there was now ‘good operational food standards’ and that Mr Khan had confirmed that hygiene standards would be maintained. There was now hot water at wash basins, and a room that had been used for storage and food preparation was now solely used for storage.
The court heard that Mr Khan began running the premises on April 1, 2014, the day before the first inspection. Asked by Judge Mary Devins (pictured) if this inspection was fair to a premises newly opened, Ms McTigue stated that it was important to ensure standards of food safety.
Ms McTigue said the business had previously been served with an ‘improvement order’ and when this wasn’t completed, charges were brought against him.  Defending solicitor Liam Sheridan said his client cooperated fully with all items and that the issues were ‘minor in nature’. He said Mr Khan is based in the UK but returns to Ireland one week per month. Judge Devins adjourned the matter to December 8 next.