Consumers are increasingly at risk of food poisoning and serious health issues due to a significant crisis in food safety, resulting in an alarming backlog of inspections.
A BBC investigation has revealed that one in five restaurants and takeaways have not been inspected by food authorities in over two years. Environmental health teams cite a recruitment crisis and pandemic-related backlogs as the primary reasons for this troubling trend.
Unison, the public services union, has expressed grave concerns, calling this a “serious public health issue.” A spokesperson stated, “The delays in inspections mean that food businesses with poor hygiene practices can operate with little fear of being caught.”
This investigation comes in the wake of a serious E-coli outbreak in June, linked to contaminated products, which has heightened concerns about food safety. Emily Miles, chief executive of the Food Standards Agency (FSA), which oversees food hygiene inspections in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, acknowledged that while councils are managing to clear backlogs of high-risk inspections that built up during the Covid lockdowns, lower-risk and new venues are being overlooked. She warned, “It’s a slow-burning issue that could lead to significant problems. We have high food standards in this country, but it’s something you won’t appreciate until it’s compromised.”
The severity of the crisis varies across the country. In Rochford, Essex, 68% of food hygiene inspections were last conducted over two years ago, the highest rate in Great Britain. Following closely are Argyll and Bute with 66%, Dumfries and Galloway with 65%, and both the Orkney Islands and Aberdeen City with 64%.
A spokesman for Food Standards Scotland (FSS) highlighted the need for reform, noting that staffing levels of food safety officers are at a low 47%. The UK charity Unchecked has criticised the decline in food standards enforcement, attributing it to a “general curtailment of enforcement activity.”
Rochford District Council responded, stating: “The authority takes food safety very seriously. The backlog was due to an IT system fault that delayed inspections. Once identified, the fault was fixed, and a contractor was hired to address the backlog. We expect to clear it within the next six weeks. Additionally, we have hired a new inspector and have another in training, ensuring we have adequate resources moving forward.
