Council food control officers took action to maintain standards at almost 500 premises in Blackpool during a six month period last year as part of measures to protect the public.
A council report says there are approximately 2,092 registered food businesses in the town and ensuring they comply with the rules is of “highest priority” with inspections carried out regularly.
The report, presented to a recent meeting of the full council by cabinet member for Community Safety, Street Scene and Neighbourhoods Coun Paula Burdess, adds: “The Food Control Team has had an extremely productive 2024 season, when from May to October it accomplished 474 food hygiene interventions, surpassing individual monthly targets.”
Enforcement action during that time period against businesses which did not comply with food regulations led to action including two successful prosecutions with at least a further four in the pipeline.
In addition the council served 20 businesses with hygiene improvement notices and three with cautions, while there were also two voluntary closures and food was seized from five businesses.
Coun Burdess added in her report: “This great work has been completed by three food control officers, a technician and the food control manager amongst the other duties for which they are responsible such as food standards, feed controls, health and safety and infection control.”
One case where action led to improvement is the Daish’s Blackpool Hotel on the Promenade which was fined £14,000 in July 2024 after it was prosecuted following an inspection in August 2023 which found a poor level of cleanliness in the kitchen.
The company pleaded guilty to five food hygiene offences and two health and safety offences, but following a re-inspection in March 2024, the hotel was given a food hygiene rating of four, meaning it is now rated as ‘good’.
The hotel’s commercial director Paul Harper said the hotel had taken “immediate steps to rectify the situation” following the 2023 inspection including a deep clean of the kitchen.
In July last year EAT Indian in Church Street was temporarily shut after it was visited by food hygiene inspectors and received a zero food hygiene rating, and was served with Hygiene a Improvement Notice.
It was re-inspected in December 2024 and now has a food hygiene rating of two which means ‘improvement necessary’.
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