There are many benefits to restaurant inspection disclosure or grades.
Those benefits are negated when the public display is voluntary.
Get 2-out-of-5 stars, don’t post the sign.
Toronto, New York, Los Angeles and hundreds of other cities have mandatory disclosure.
Mayor Khal Asfour in the southwest Sydney suburb of Bankstown says food safety ratings should be mandatory.
They are then handed a slick certificate to post up in view of customers.
However Bankstown is pushing for the scheme, which is currently voluntary, to be mandated across all eligible food outlets.
A similar push is on by local councils England.
The Food Authority falls under NSW Primary Industries Minister Niall Blair’s portfolio.
However The Express’s request for comment was directed to Food Authority chief executive Dr Lisa Szabo.
When asked whether she would support mandating Scores on Doors state wide, Dr Szabo said the authority preferred to keep it voluntary.
“Displaying a Scores on Doors certificate can be a marketing advantage for businesses that comply with food safety legislation because it can provide a point of difference from competitors,” she said.
Fifty three of 152 councils in NSW have signed up to implement the program.
In south west Sydney only Bankstown and Liverpool are currently members.
The authority’s NSW Food Safety Strategy has set a target of 75 per cent business participation by 2021.
Bankstown Council has signed up 33 retail food businesses out of about 600 this financial year.
The scheme excludes supermarkets, delicatessens or greengrocers, service stations, convenience stores, mobile food vans and temporary markets.
Which further undermines the system.
Chicken Heaven owner Paul Hong, who proudly displays a five star rating in the window of the Chester Hill takeaway, agreed the program should be compulsory.
“Yes. Based on the individual [business] keeping up their cleanliness, hygiene and all that required in the food industry,” he said.