Sam Truelove of Get Surrey writes that Jax, in South Street, was inspected on May 24 by a Mole Valley District Councilofficer on behalf of the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
The café and takeaway, which sells a variety of sandwiches, rolls and baguettes, received a food hygiene rating of one – the second lowest possible – which means “major improvement” is necessary.
The damning details of the report have been released following a Freedom of Information (FOI) request and show that major concerns were raised over the potential cross contamination and cleanliness of the eatery.
The hygiene officer even sent staff to buy chemical disinfectant during her visit.
The report said: “[Staff] handle a lot of raw meat in a small area – no sanitiser or understanding of cross contamination.”
It adds: “No hand washing seen after handling raw meat or shell eggs even after being told to wash hands.”
According to the latest information on the FSA’s website, Jax, which is open between 8am and 3pm, is still judged to have a rating of one for its food hygiene, and is still failing to meet two of the key areas assessed by the inspector.
A KFC outlet was forced to close after a rat ran though a chip service area, prompting a staff member to scream and customers to yell “there’s a rat,” a mother claims.
Chris Knight of the UK Mirror reports the rat, allegedly darted through the chips and quickly disappeared from sight under the fryer.
The Wallsend branch on High Street West was quickly closed temporarily as the fast-food giant scrambled on the “rat issue” the council have confirmed.
Sam, 21, from Wallsend, said: “The rat literally ran across where they put the chips in a bag.
“The woman behind the counter started screaming, and everyone started shouting ‘there’s a rat’.
“Everyone behind the counter was just shocked as we all were.
“They were just stood there scared.
“The floor was absolutely filthy – there would not be a rat if it was clear area, it was absolutely disgusting.
“I’m just happy I didn’t get given my food before, I would have ended up being sick.”
Refunds were issued to customers before all guests including Sam, partner James Butcher and newborn son Tommy, were ushered out as the restaurant closed its doors at about 6pm on October 4, Chronicle Live reports.
Mum-of-one Sam said: “I heard six hours later it was re-opened, which I think is really bad.
“You hear about rats carrying diseases, so why would you re-open that day?
“Even if it came from outside, you should not have a rat in a food restaurant.
“Now this has happened, I will never go back.”
A North Tyneside Council spokesman confirmed KFC contacted Environmental Health and called in pest control before re-opening that evening.
The spokesman said: “KFC proactively informed Environmental Health on October 4 of the appropriate and timely actions they had taken to resolve the rat issue.
“The company closed the premise immediately, disposed of all food on display and called in a pest control contractor.
“A food safety officer visited the premise to confirm that there was no rat activity and that appropriate preventative measures had been taken.”
Something is probably lost in translation. But as reported by Repubblica Milano and translated in ProMed, a batch of Bonduelle brand frozen spinach was removed from the market.
The decision of the company, which produces the food in question at a Spanish plant in Navarre, came after a warning from the Ministry of Health. “The product should not be consumed — reads in the recall — due to a suspected presence of mandrake leaves.”
The withdrawal concerns production batch 15986504-7222 45M63 08:29 whose 750g bags have an expiration date of August 2019.
On 30 Sep 2017, an entire family was admitted to the Fatebenefratelli hospital in Milan after eating a pack of frozen spinach bought at the supermarket. A 60-year-old man, a 55-year-old woman, and their children, 18 and 16 years old, ended up at the first aid unit because they showed mental confusion and amnesia of various degrees of severity.
The AST [local health authority] analyses have determined that the clinical picture is compatible with contamination of the original product with mandrake, a grass that can invade fields of edible vegetable crops. The leaves of mandrake, thought to be magical in antiquity, are actually poisonous.
The company issued a clarification in the evening. “There is no information — the statement reads — that permits the attribution of mandrake leaf contamination of our products.” Bonduelle — adds the note — is issuing the recall of some of the product ‘Spinaci Millefoglie Bonduelle’ as a precautionary measure.”
Isle of Wight, known to most Western kids as the home of a groovy rock and jazz festival, is now home to three people have a potentially fatal kidney condition following an outbreak of E. coli which has been linked to unpasteurised milk from a farm.
Another four people affected by the bacteria have made a good recovery, Public Health England said.
The source has been traced to Briddlesford Lodge Farm near Newport.
Dr Ishani Kar-Purkayastha from Public Health England said the raw milk had been removed from sale.
“We are asking anyone who has raw milk purchased from Briddlesford Farm on, or before Monday, 25 September 2017, to either return it to the farm or dispose of it,” he said.
In a statement, the farm said: “We are especially concerned about the well-being of those affected by this bug, and we wish them and their families every good fortune at this terrible time.”
On the same day that Australia celebrated national egg day with vid-clips of schoolchildren pronouncing their love of eggs, the UK Food Standards Authority says it’s OK for pregnant women to eat raw eggs.
These are both so wrong on so many levels.
The UK’s contribution to international cuisine has been mushy peas and mad cow disease.
The UK Food Standards Authority’s contribution to food policy has been cook your food until it is piping hot, and now, it’s OK for pregnant women to eat raw eggs.
With five daughters, I’ve spent a lot of time around pregnant women, they may feel like Rocky Balboa, but biology don’t work that way.
The Food Standards Agency has announced a change to its advice about eating eggs – infants, children, pregnant women and elderly people can now safely eat raw or lightly cooked eggs that are produced under the British Lion Code of Practice.
The revised advice, based on the latest scientific evidence, means that people vulnerable to infection or who are likely to suffer serious symptoms from food poisoning (such as infants, children, pregnant women and elderly people) can now safely eat raw or lightly cooked hen eggs or foods containing them.
We had previously advised that vulnerable groups should not consume raw or lightly cooked eggs, because eggs may contain salmonella bacteria which can cause serious illness.
The decision to change the advice is a result of the findings from an expert group that was set up by the Advisory Committee on the Microbiological Safety of Food (ACMSF) in February 2015 to look at egg safety. Its report, published in July 2016, highlighted that the presence of salmonella in UK eggs has been dramatically reduced in recent years, and the risks are very low for eggs which have been produced according to food safety controls applied by the British Lion Code of Practice. More than 90% of UK eggs are produced under this scheme.
Heather Hancock, Chairman of the Food Standards Agency, said: “It’s good news that now even vulnerable groups can safely eat UK eggs without needing to hardboil them, so long as they bear the British Lion mark. The FSA has thoroughly reviewed the scientific evidence about the safety of these eggs, and we’re confident that we can now change our advice to consumers.
“The major reduction in the risk of salmonella in Lion eggs is testament to the work carried out by egg producers. The measures they’ve taken, from vaccination of hens through to improving hygiene on farms and better transportation, have dramatically reduced salmonella levels in UK hens.”
A range of interventions have been put in place across the food chain as part of the Lion scheme including: vaccinating hens, enhanced testing for salmonella, improved farm hygiene, effective rodent control, independent auditing and traceability, and keeping the eggs cool while transporting them from farm to shop.
Great. Show us mere mortals the numbers.
And any science-based body that recommends cooking food until it is piping hot is seriously suspect.
“We know from back in the ’80s when all the scare started, there was an issue with eggs.
“But what the Lion standard does, it is a fully independent, audited code of practice to make sure we have standards on the farm that make sure we can’t have any of those disease problems again.
“And it has shown time after time, in those intervening years, that it is just a brilliant food safety code.”
No one thinks their food is going to make anyone sick. After 15 years in food safety that’s what I’ve learned.
I’ve heard it from restaurants, processors, extension folks, event organizers. Whoever.
Turns out, that’s just wishful thinking.
If there’s an event, like say, a chili cook-off, and folks don’t know how pathogens get in food and grow, someone is probably gonna get sick.
Sorta like what happened last week in Chincoteague, Virginia.
According to Delaware.gov, Virginia regulators are looking into illnesses after a bunch of people got sick following a chili competition.
The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) began investigating a gastrointestinal disease outbreak shortly after a number of people who attended the event developed nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever. Illness in a Delaware resident who reportedly attended the event, may be linked.
VDH, reached out to neighboring states’ health departments, including the Delaware Division of Public Health, and asked for assistance in getting their residents to complete the survey, whether they became ill or not. The survey can be found at https://redcap.vdh.virginia.gov/redcap/surveys/?s=RPPDH7DWDF.
VDH estimates 2,500 attendees from multiple states were present at the cook-off. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with additional questions should call the Accomack County, Virginia Health Department at 757-302-4268.
No one thinks their food is going to make anyone sick. After 15 years in food safety that’s what I’ve learned.
I’ve heard it from restaurants, processors, extension folks, event organizers. Whoever.
Turns out, that’s just wishful thinking.
If there’s an event, like say, a chili cook-off, and folks don’t know how pathogens get in food and grow, someone is probably gonna get sick.
Sorta like what happened last week in Chincoteague, Virginia.
According to Delaware.gov, Virginia regulators are looking into illnesses after a bunch of people got sick following a chili competition.
The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) began investigating a gastrointestinal disease outbreak shortly after a number of people who attended the event developed nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever. Illness in a Delaware resident who reportedly attended the event, may be linked.
VDH, reached out to neighboring states’ health departments, including the Delaware Division of Public Health, and asked for assistance in getting their residents to complete the survey, whether they became ill or not. The survey can be found at https://redcap.vdh.virginia.gov/redcap/surveys/?s=RPPDH7DWDF. VDH estimates 2,500 attendees from multiple states were present at the cook-off. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with additional questions should call the Accomack County, Virginia Health Department at 757-302-4268.
There are exactly five cities I could live in. Portland, Madison, Toronto, Raleigh.
And Austin.
I grew up in one of these, and currently live in another.
The only problem with Austin is a lack of hockey.
Today I gave a talk to the Texas Environmental Health Association about a bunch of food safety stuff. Got to catch up with old friends and tell folks about some of the fun things we’re working on.
Also got to eat some brisket, listen to good music and drink some Texas beer.
As first reported in English by the always excellent ProMed and translated from IA Komsomolskaya Pravda, Donetsk, fish in L’viv, Ukraine poisoned more than 70 people, the most massive poisoning in the last 10 years.
This was reported by the press service of the Department of CivilProtection of the L’viv Regional State Administration on its Facebook page. “As of 6:00 on 2 Oct 2017, a total of 71 people were affected by the outbreak of infection, including 7 children,” the ministry said. In addition, there are 6 people in outpatient care, including 1 child, who have consulted a doctor, but refused to be hospitalized. After conducting laboratory tests, all patients were diagnosed with salmonellosis. The condition of one patient is severe, the rest are in the hospital, in close to satisfactory condition.
(A ProMed editor writes: Although salmonellosis is not generally considered high on the list of fish-borne illnesses, it certainly does occur, as reflected in this recent review: Barrett KA, Nakao JH, Taylor EV, et al. Fish-associated foodborne disease outbreaks: United States, 1998-2015. Foodborne Pathog Dis. 2017; 14(9): 537-43.)
Reports started to trickle in about people becoming seriously ill. Enough people fell ill to prompt an investigation from the state Department of Health. Dozens sounded off on social media about gastrointestinal problems.
According to health department officials, they are continuing to try to reach more than 2,000 attendees from multiple states in order to get them to submit information to the online outbreak survey and see their primary care provider if the are still ill.
Sam Truelove of Get Surrey writes that Jax, in South Street, was inspected on May 24 by a Mole Valley District Councilofficer on behalf of the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
