When you go to a restaurant for a bite to eat, you’re probably more concerned you’ll get good service than that the cook washed his or her hands after leaving the bathroom — we tend to worry about the things we see more than the things we don’t.
Which is exactly why health units, like the Sudbury and District Health Unit, make regular inspections of places that serve food, in order to make sure you’re not getting an order of e. coli with your Cobb salad.
Today, the health unit issued a release “warning the public not to consume food from uninspected food premises. Uninspected food premises may not meet provincial regulatory food safety requirements and may be placing the health of patrons at risk.”
Some of these outfits, the health unit said, advertise for catering or baking services through social media, so customers never actually have to visit the place before placing an order.
So what’s the consumer to do?
Well, for starters, the SDHU publishes an inventory of inspected food premises — if the place you’re going to grab a burger isn’t on that list, it hasn’t been inspected, so you’re rolling the dice when it comes to your wellbeing. Plus, it’s illegal.
Under provincial law, if you plan to sell food you have to notify the local health unit. Once notification is received, the health unit is supposed to inspect the place routinely to ensure food is prepared in a safe and sanitary manner.
“If you are aware of an uninspected food premises, including those advertising through social media sites, we ask that you notify the Health Unit so that we can conduct an investigation,” said Ashley DeRocchis, an environmental support officer with the SDHU, in a news release. “The Health Unit investigates all reports of uninspected food premises and takes appropriate action to address and eliminate identified health hazards.”
The health unit also publishes 12 months’ worth of inspection results on an interactive map that shows you every inspected premises, they’re inspection results and, if they failed an inspection, why they failed and what was done about it.
The easiest way to find the SDHU inspection data is through Sudbury.com. You can find it under our community information portal (look for the “Community” link in the menu below our logo — you’ll find tons of community information there, actually), or click this link.
You can also use your smartphone or iPhone to scan the QR code included on the Check Before Your Eat! decals at inspected restaurants. While posting the decal is not mandatory, it is strongly encouraged that owners and operators post this decal at the front entryway of their food premises for the benefit of customers.
