​A spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (June 27) said that a food premises in Eastern District, which was found to be in breach of the Food Business Regulation (FBR) during the department's special operation targeting the hygienic condition of food premises, was prosecuted and subsequently convicted by the court. With the demerit points accumulated under the Demerit Points System (DPS), the licence of the premises will be suspended for seven days.
The spokesman said that since improper handling of food waste by food premises can give rise to rodent problems, the FEHD ran a five-week special operation from early December last year to January this year to target irregularities of food premises such as food preparation, scullery hygiene, improper storage of articles and illegal dumping of refuse at rear lanes (including dumping of bagged refuse in small hours), with a view to enhancing awareness of rodent prevention and control among the operators of food premises, and taking stringent enforcement action.
A conviction for the above-mentioned breaches was recorded against the food premises concerned earlier this year. As a cumulative total of 15 demerit points was registered against the licensee under the DPS, the contraventions resulted in seven days' business suspension.
The spokesman reminded licensees of food premises to comply with the FBR, and to keep their premises and the nearby environment clean and hygienic in order to prevent rodent infestation, or they may be subject to prosecution resulting in licence suspension or cancellation.
To enhance the effectiveness of related operations, the FEHD undertook another round of targeted operations from May 20 to June 23, and on June 24 launched a new round special enforcement operation lasting nine weeks to sustain its efforts in curbing such illegal activities and improving environmental hygiene to help combat the rodent problem.
For the five-week operation carried out between May and June, the FEHD issued 2 207 advisory letters, 423 verbal warnings, four warning letters, 142 fixed penalty notices and took out 119 prosecutions. As regards the food premises with demerit points registered for relevant offences, the FEHD will continue to follow up with the suspension or cancellation of licences according to the established mechanism.
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