Half of Cyprus’s annual food safety inspections are carried out during summer, when high temperatures allow bacteria to multiply more easily in food left unrefrigerated. Businesses rated as high risk are checked more frequently under a scoring system based on previous inspections, sampling results and EU food safety alerts.
Director of the Health Services Herodotos Herodotou told CNA that inspections are organised according to the risk profile of each food business, alongside food sampling programmes conducted throughout the year.
How food premises are assessed
Each food business is assigned a score based on criteria used by the Health Services, Herodotou explained.
These criteria include the findings of previous inspections, results from food samples collected at the premises and information received through the EU’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed, known as RASFF.
Premises assessed as high risk are inspected more frequently than those in lower-risk categories. Herodotou said these businesses are specifically targeted each year for additional inspections.
Fines and temporary closures
When officials identify dangerous conditions, the head of the Health Services may impose an administrative fine. If the condition of the premises warrants it, legislation also allows the business to be closed for four days.
A business may reopen sooner if it complies with the required measures. If it fails to do so, the closure may be extended by another four days, or for longer until compliance is achieved.
So far this summer, the only closure involved the venue in Limassol where a food poisoning incident occurred during a wedding reception, Herodotou said.
Why inspections increase in summer
If a business’s risk score requires three or four inspections annually, one or two may be conducted during summer, depending on the judgement of the inspecting health officer.
The increased focus reflects the effect of high temperatures, which allow bacteria to develop more easily when food is left outside the refrigerator.
Annual inspection report
The Health Services will compile a report on the inspections conducted at the end of the year or the beginning of the next.
Source: CNA.
