Inspectors fail half of Sharjah’s restaurants

Yasin Kakande and Matt Kwong

• Last Updated: June 07. 2009 12:44AM UAE / June 6. 2009 8:44PM GMT

SHARJAH // More than half of all restaurants monitored by Sharjah Municipality have failed basic food hygiene inspections on such grounds as out-of-date food and mouldy kitchens.

Over the past 12 months, inspectors checked 1,588 restaurants and cafeterias, of which only 223 met the minimum requirements, according to Jassim Mohammed al Ali, head of the municipality’s internal inspection department.

Of the remaining establishments, 891 were issued with warnings and 474 were closed temporarily until they improved.

Restaurants and grocery shops in the capital will face similar inspections over the coming weeks.

Those that failed were faulted on issues such as poor maintenance, serving food that had passed its use-by date, black mould on kitchen surfaces, flaking paint falling on to food, and staff failing to observe correct food safety procedures.

The news comes a week after a four-year-old girl died from food poisoning in Sharjah. Marwa Faisal died in Al Qassimi Hospital early last Sunday, just 55 minutes after she, her parents and her brother had been admitted with symptoms that included violent vomiting.

The family had ordered food from a restaurant the previous morning before a home-cooked lunch and dinner. The Ministry of Health is still investigating the incident.

Sharjah Municipality said it had started inspections to stop shops turning off refrigerators at night to save power, a common cause of food poisoning, particularly in summer. Authorities also plan to keep records of food poisoning cases in the Emirates in an effort to trace common causes.

Mr al Ali urged restaurants to improve standards, emphasising that a poor reputation would harm business. “Every closure we make undermines your clients’ confidence in your restaurant,” he said. “We are urging all food businesses to adhere to best food safety and hygiene practices.” He added that inspections “will continue until we are satisfied there is adherence to good standards in all restaurants”.

There are 7,066 food-related establishments in Sharjah, with 400 to 500 new businesses licensed every year, Mr al Ali said.

Restaurant owners who had been inspected said the municipality checked for the cleanliness and level of maintenance, in addition to food hygiene and staff compliance.

The owner of a cafeteria in the Nabaa area, which serves tea to passing motorists, said inspectors had issued him with a letter warning him about the cleanliness of the kitchen, which he claimed to have improved before the inspectors’ return visit.

In March this year inspectors closed Al Mallah restaurant in Al Wahda Street, popular for its Arabic food, and fined its owner Dh100,000 (US$27,232). It remained closed for one month. The owner, Abdul Raheem, said he had received a letter telling him inspectors had found the restaurant selling some food past its sell-by date.

Dubai Municipality, meanwhile, conducted more than 28,600 inspections last year at ports, hotels, restaurants, cafeteria and depots and warehouses storing food. Officials did not say how many had failed their inspections.

The Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority has warned grocery shop operators and restaurant managers in the emirate a concerted food inspection campaign is on the way in the lead-up to the summer.

Mohammed al Reyaysa, spokesman for the ADFCA, said: “Our inspectors are always in different places. We are beginning summertime now, and we have to be aware that there is hot weather that will affect the transportation, storage and packaging of food.”

The unannounced check-ups would also take in rest stops and dining establishments along major highways. “This is the time when many people go travelling, so we’re checking all the grocery stores and supermarkets on the roads.”

Last month in Al Ain, spot checks by ADFCA inspectors and city police found 143 lorries hauling produce to markets and restaurants without proper permits. Over three days they caught 11 drivers with expired permits and 11 lorries that were unfit for the safe transport of food.

“They were not able to carry foods that needed to be kept at certain temperatures,” Mr al Reyaysa said. Altogether, 437kg of food had been spoilt, damaged or below standard for service and sale to the public.

Improper handling or transport of food could result in fines of more than Dh100,000, he said.

The ADFCA is also considering implementing a restaurants grading system similar to that implemented in 2006 for fish markets and butcher shops.

Under the proposed programme, all the emirate’s food outlets would be required clearly to display a certificate disclosing health inspection results –“A” for exceptional health and safety practices, “B” for very good, or a passing “C” grade.

Mr al Reyaysa said that when the programme had started in 2006, “we didn’t give out any As because we wanted to encourage them all to improve”.

Even shops that had scored well for hygiene in previous years were not exempt from repeat inspections. “They must keep their standards always in mind, because one of those we rewarded last year was closed down this year.”

ykakande@thenational.ae

mkwong@thenational.ae