Residents and visitors to Swansea can now check out the cleanliness of a restaurant or fast food business in the city via the web.
A new food hygiene rating scheme coordinated by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has been running since October in Swansea and gives potential customers a guide to how the food related business is managed in terms of hygiene.
The rating is awarded by Swansea Council Food Safety Officers who carry out regular inspections of food businesses and then publish the rating on a special website set up by the FSA.
The hygiene standards found at these inspections are rated on a scale ranging from zero at the bottom (which means ‘urgent improvement necessary’) to a top rating of five (‘very good’).
Kath Johnston, Divisional Officer at Swansea Council’s Food and Safety Division, said: “The ratings will give consumers a glimpse of what is going on in the kitchen when they eat out, or behind the scenes at the places they shop, before they make their decision about which place they prefer to visit.
“Our job is to inspect local businesses that serve food to the public and ensure they are achieving the legal requirements and standards.
“Any business that has been inspected since October 2010 will appear on the new website along with the rating they received.”
Rob Wilkins, Head of the General Enforcement Team at the FSA in Wales said: “We recognise the real progress that has been made in improving hygiene standards in food outlets through ‘local’ food hygiene rating schemes.
But having a single nationwide scheme will mean a level playing field for businesses across the country, and consumers will be able to recognise and use the ratings in their own area, as well as further from home.
“So it’s great news that Swansea Council has switched to the new national scheme.”
Anyone wishing to view the website and check out the ratings for food business in Swansea should visit www.food.gov.uk/ratings
