Wake up call


More online www.thecaterer.com Food hygiene comes under scrutiny


with higher and more frequent fines New rules will mean that companies can face penalties linked to their turnover for even minor food hygiene offences, says Duncan Reed The problem


Mass catering comes with risks. One large leisure operator was recently fined £1.5m for serving food unfit for human consump- tion, resulting in one death and 33 falling ill. The severity of the fine sends a clear message: ensure your food hygiene procedures are water-tight or face the consequences.


The law The prosecuting authority accepted that had the leisure operator’s food safety procedures been properly followed, the incident could have been avoided. But the mere presence of these procedures was insufficient to protect them from prosecution and a significant fine. In this instance, the leisure operator argued that the incident was attributable to the poor conduct of the individuals concerned. The pub manager and chef were in fact impris- oned for perverting the course of justice after it emerged they had tried to destroy and falsify evidence. The jury took the view that the lei- sure operator should have taken active steps to ensure that members of staff were adequately trained and aware of the risks.


Expert advice


If an organisation does place food on the mar- ket that is unfit for consumption, the burden is on them to prove that the internal food hygiene procedures are sufficient. In other words, the company would have to prove that there was nothing more it could have rea- sonably done to prevent the incident from happening. As you can imagine, this can be very difficult to prove.


Large-scale caterers therefore need to think


carefully about how their food hygiene proce- dures work in practice. Having strict hygiene rules in place is a good start, but this will count for nothing if it appears to a local authority that the company has not checked that its pro- cedures are being complied with at kitchen level. For example, are regular health and safety audits carried out? Does the organisa- tion take a ‘zero-tolerance’ approach to poor hygiene and discipline members of staff who fail to comply with the company’s policies? Last year’s annual report on food law enforcement by local authorities revealed that 411,077 interventions were carried out in respect of food hygiene in 2013/2014. Although only a small number of these actually led to prosecutions, organisations should be aware that local authorities are pro- active about food safety and hygiene laws.


40 | The Caterer | 20 March 2015


“The new guidelines are likely to result in higher fines across the board, but will particularly increase fines for organisations with high annual turnovers”


Organisations involved in the sale of food to


consumers should be aware that the Ministry of Justice’s Sentencing Council was recently consulting on new sentencing guidelines for food safety and hygiene offences. The consul- tation was due to end on 18 February 2015. The new guidelines, which are expected to be finalised later this year, are likely to result in higher fines across the board, but will particularly increase fines for organisations with high annual turnovers.


To-do checklist


Organisations must put in place food safety management procedures and keep up-to-date


records relating to these procedures. It is also vital that members of staff who handle food are supervised, instructed and trained in food hygiene. The Food Standards agency outlines that the four main things to remember for good hygiene are cleaning, cooking, chilling and cross-contamination.


Beware


Under the proposed guidelines, fines will be pegged to the offending company’s annual turnover, meaning that higher-grossing com- panies will pay more. The highest possible fine band under the proposed guidelines for food safety and hygiene offences is between £500,000 and £3m, which would apply to organisations with an annual turnover of above £50m. Importantly, large and medium-sized com- panies will also face higher fines for minor technical breaches under the new guidelines. This makes complying with food safety and hygiene law more important than ever.


Contact Duncan Reed is an associate at TLT Solicitors Duncan.Reed@TLTsolicitors.com


www.thecaterer.com


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