This week is National Food Safety Week (4 to 10 June 2018) and Torbay Council has partnered with the Food Standards Agency to shine a light on food safety and how they are #ProtectingYourPlate.

As a nation we love our food and over £203 billion was spent on food and drink last year alone. But the safety of our food is often something we take for granted.

There are a whole host of people that work to keep food safe. Torbay Council has a team of dedicated Environmental Health Officers whose job it is to inspect local food businesses to ensure hygiene standards are up to scratch.

These officers have inspected 1,025 businesses across Torbay and awarded food hygiene ratings of 3 (generally satisfactory) or above under the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme. The scheme covers businesses supplying or serving food direct to consumers such as restaurants, pubs, cafés, takeaways, food vans or stalls, canteens, hotels, supermarkets, schools, hospitals and care homes.

The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme helps people choose where to shop for food and where to eat out by giving them clear information about the businesses’ hygiene standards. There are six hygiene ratings ranging from ‘0’ (urgent improvement required) at the bottom to ‘5’ (very good) at the top.

Businesses are given green and black stickers to display at their premises and all ratings are published online at ratings.food.gov.uk. Having these ratings online helps to give residents an informed choice about where to buy and eat food. The vast majority of food businesses in and around Torbay are ranked generally satisfactory, good or very good.

Cllr Vic Ellery from Torbay Council said “We have a dedicated team that works hard to ensure that food which is served to our residents in Torbay is safe and they can dine out with peace of mind. Research shows that food hygiene when eating out is the UK’s number one food safety concern so it’s great to see that the majority of our local food businesses hold a rating of 3 or above.”

Angela Towers, Head of the Food Hygiene Rating Team at the Food Standards Agency, said: “Working in partnership with Torbay Council and their expert Environmental Health Officers we are dedicated to ensuring that people can trust that the food they buy and eat is safe and honest. Our Food Hygiene Rating Scheme empowers the public to make informed decisions about where to buy and eat food, it’s also proved hugely effective in driving up standards in food businesses across the country.”

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