In the wake of the food-poisoning incidents being reported from Kerala, the Health Minister of the State Veena George on Thursday came out with instructions for eateries, like having licence and registration, and maintaining hygiene, cleanliness.
The Minister told reporters here that each and every eatery has to follow the instructions and the responsibility of ensuring them should rest with a supervisor. She further said a hygiene-rating system was also being implemented for hotels and a mobile app would be launched this month for consumers to upload photos and videos with regard to the food bought in an eatery is fresh and the ambience in the outlet clean.
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George said the establishments without licence or registration would not be allowed to operate and once an eatery is licensed, inspections would be held at regular intervals. If a licence is suspended, it would be re-issued only after the Commissioner of Food Safety is satisfied that the deficiencies have been rectified. Besides that, use of raw eggs for making mayonnaise, which is often served along with dishes like shawarma, is prohibited in the State and only pasteurised eggs can be used for making the creamy sauce. Else, vegetarian mayonnaise should be preferred, she said.
Another instruction was to put a sticker on food parcels indicating when it was prepared and the amount of time by which it should be consumed, said a release from the Health Department. Also, a health card is mandatory for all employees of eateries, said the release. In events held in auditoriums, only a catering service licensed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India would be permitted to serve food, the Minister said.
