The mart café at Raphoe Mart was closed by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) last month due to breaches of food safety legislation.

The café is operated separately to the mart.

The closure order was issued following a number of non-compliances after the FSAI found that “there is or is likely to be a grave and immediate danger to public health” at the premises.

The FSAI found that the premises was not kept clean and that there were accumulations of food debris, grease and encrusted dirt on floor surfaces, wall surfaces and shelving.

The interiors of both fridges were dirty and the seals of fridges were full of food debris, it found.

“There was no hot water at any of the sinks in the premises. There were no surface-cleaning chemicals available on the premises.

“A wash hand basin had not been provided in the staff toilet, therefore facilities and materials for hygienic washing and drying hands were not provided,” the FSAI said.

Food

Furthermore, the authority found that foods were cooked as batches, to be reheated to order.

“These foods were found stored in containers at room temperature prior to reheating, as the hot holding unit was broken.

“A temperature of 39.9°C was recorded of these foods, giving rise to the risk of growth of pathogenic microorganisms and/or the formation of toxins in the foods.”

Flies were evident in the kitchen, giving rise to contamination risks and the UV insectocuter was found to be unplugged.

Allergens

The FSAI said the food business operator made food available for sale or supply without indicating written particulars of any allergen in the food at (A) the point of presentation, (B) the point of sale, or (C) the point of supply.

“There was therefore a risk of possible presence of undeclared allergens in food which has the potential to cause a life-threatening allergic reaction,” it added.