Tuesday, Mar 20, 2012
Gulf News
Sharjah The municipality of Sharjah fined more than 4,300 food establishments last year for selling poor quality products and for commercial fraud, a senior official said yesterday.
The announcement was made after the Annual Report 2011 of the Food Control Section at Sharjah Municipality was published.
In 2011, up to 62,477 establishments were inspected, including restaurants, cafeterias, supermarkets, grocery stores and public kitchens, in addition to stalls at the Fruit and Vegetable Market.
“As many as 4,321 establishments were fined for not adhering to the healthy and safety standard, and 1,579 establishments for commercial fraud,” said Dr Rasha Ahmad Al Qasimi, Assistant Director General for Health, Environment and Quality, at Sharjah Municipality.
Dr Rasha explained that during the inspection campaigns, a sample of food products were tested at the municipality’s laboratory and in case of any doubt of the product’s validity, a sample was taken at random from the market.
Sharjah Municipality also registered 502 new food establishments in 2011, reflecting a significant growth in the industry. These new establishments were also inspected.
Dr Rasha pointed out that 46 shops were fined at the fruit and vegetable market, while 187 stalls at the fish market were fined for not adhering to the health and safety rules.
“As part of our campaign, we destroyed 1,468 kilograms of vegetables and fruits because they were unfit for human consumption, and also disposed of 7,936 kg of fish,” said Dr Rasha.
By Mariam M.Al Serkal?Staff Reporter
Gulf News 2012. All rights reserved.
