As expected, Wales has become the first country within the UK to introduce a mandatory scheme requiring food businesses to openly display their food hygiene rating. The Welsh Assembly’s Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013 has been granted Royal Assent by Her Majesty the Queen.
The Act will require food businesses to display their food hygiene rating – from between 0 (urgent improvement necessary) to 5 (very good), based on their compliance with food law.
Local authorities in Wales will enforce the mandatory scheme in their area and ensure ratings are correctly displayed. It is expected the mandatory scheme will come into operation later this year to allow businesses time to prepare.
It is likely that the rest of the UK will eventually follow suit with this and as a result, never has it been more important to ensure that you obtain the highest possible rating for your business.
We have mentioned in previous articles that there has been a recent indication of ratings being reduced for premises who are not complying with the Food Standards Agency guidance on the control of E.coli O157. If you need help with this, please contact Food Alert on 020 7244 1900 or e-mail enquiries@foodalert.com.
Remember – whilst it is not currently mandatory to display this information outside of Wales, your food hygiene rating is available in the public domain at http://ratings.food.gov.uk/.