Food Hygiene and Health
Huntingdonshire District Council has a statutory duty to enforce food safety legislation.
There are currently just over 1,300 registered food premises within the District Council area ranging from the small home caterer to the large food manufacturer. A copy of this register is available for public view at Pathfinder House.
Our overall aims and objectives are to ensure through education and enforcement the safety and cleanliness of food from production through to the point of sale, to protect the public against the sale of unfit and unwholesome food or food containing extraneous matter, and to ensure the observance of hygienic practices.
What does the food team do?
Listed below are the duties that the food team performs:
- Carry out regular inspections of food premises to check on the standard of food hygiene
- Promote good food hygiene practice and provide training courses
- Offer free advice on food safety matters
- Close unhygienic premises which are a risk to health
- Investigate customer complaints about food and food businesses
- Take formal enforcement action as appropriate
- Carry out microbioloigcal and chemical sampling of food and water
- Investigate cases of food poisoning and infectious illness
What can you expect from the food team?
The Food Team will:
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Commence investigations of all food complaints within 10 days of receipt.
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Respond on the day of receipt to all food poisoning incidents notified to us
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Carry out regular routine hygiene inspections
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Carry out programmed and reactive food and water sampling
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Respond immediately to national food alerts
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Keep you fully informed of the progress made with your enquiry or complaint
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Respond to your letters within 10 working days of receipt
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Use professional trained staff who are polite and courteous
Service Plan For Food Law Enforcement
The Food Service Plan is dedicated to the food safety enforcement function. It covers all elements of food safety and hygiene for which Huntingdonshire District Council has enforcement responsibility. The Service Plan sets out how Huntingdonshire District Council will deliver the food safety enforcement function in accordance with current guidelines. Please see the link for the Service Plan for Food Law Enforcement.
Food Safety Enforcement Policy
The policy explains the approach adopted by the Environmental Health Service when carrying out the Council's duty to enforce food safety legislation. Please see the link for the Food Safety Enforcement Policy.