This week the Consumer Focus Wales report: ‘Protecting consumers from E.coli O157′ has been published. The report refers to progress by the Agency and others in implementing the recommendations in the Pennington report on the Public Inquiry into the E.coli outbreak in South Wales in 2005.
The report states:
Much of the work undertaken by public authorities in response to the inquiry has been thorough, timely and appropriate. In particular we would wish to highlight the following as positive achievements which will increase the safety of the public from E.coli O157:
▪ every local authority has adopted a ‘red flagging’ system to highlight issues of concern for future inspections
▪ some local authorities are requiring complete separation of equipment for raw and ready-to-eat meats, taking a strict interpretation of the law in order to increase consumer safety
▪ Safer Food Better Business, developed by the Food Standards Agency, is an approach to educating food businesses about hygiene that is based on robust research
▪ the Food Standards Agency’s 14-stage Food Hygiene Delivery Programme includes a set of measures which will tell us, in time, whether post-Pennington activity has actually made a difference to public safety
▪ every local authority has drawn up an action plan and appointed a senior management figure to co-ordinate work on the Pennington recommendations – this is a good start, but they need to make sure that these action plans deliver results that are consistent across local authorities.
Ongoing The Food Standards Agency is:
▪ improving methods of assessing how food hygiene inspections are undertaken by local authorities
▪ reviewing guidance on issues relating to cross-contamination, including use of sanitisers and separation of equipment for raw meats and ready-to-eat foods
▪ conducting research to better understand communication between food businesses and environmental health
▪ developing a new training course on encouraging behavioural change
▪ considering ways of making the inspection of HACCP plans audit-based
▪ regularly publishing the results of their set of measures on food hygiene
The Welsh Assembly Government is:
▪ developing guidance on standards for school toilets and hand washing facilities
The Welsh Assembly Government and Public Health Wales are:
▪ developing improved systems for out-of-hours communications with key health and care personnel
Local authorities are:
▪ following action plans on the delivery of Professor Pennington’s recommendations
The Local Better Regulation Office is:
▪ building awareness of the principles of good regulation in local authorities.
However some of the recommendations are not currently being implemented:
▪ making additional resources available, the Welsh Assembly Government and local authorities in Wales should ensure that sufficient resources are available to do the extra work necessary as a result of Professor Pennington’s recommendations. The Welsh Assembly Government should ring-fence for food hygiene £2.5 to £3 million each year for five years.
▪ making the inspection of HACCP plans audit-based, the Food Standards Agency must prioritise their planned review of this issue. The Welsh Assembly Government and local authorities need to ensure sufficient resources are available to implement this recommendation, particularly for high-risk premises.
▪ keeping a copy of a business’s HACCP plan at every inspection, the Food Standards Agency and local authorities in Wales should explore all avenues for full implementation of this recommendation, including developing a website to allow businesses to operate online HACCP plans.