The Environmental Health Directorate within the Superintendence of Public Health is making every effort to keep its contact with the public through a regular review statement.

The following is a summary of actions taken during April 2013.

The following is a summary of the report hereunder:

o 583 improvement notices were issued;

o 2 HACCP audits were carried out;

o 16 undertakings were issued;

o 62.75kg of foodstuffs were destroyed;

o 12 Legionella audits carried out;

o 11 swimming pools were audited during 7 audits;

o 17 schools inspected;

o 10 abatement notices issued;

o 50 imported food consignments imported were inspected;

o 2135 notification of food and 4 food supplements for importing/trading into Malta;

o 1128 personal parcels checked, and 15 were rejected;

o 35 Ship Sanitation certificates issued;

o 174 applications were processed;

o 2813 control cards for narcotics and psychotropic substances were issued;

o 8 illegal tobacco related adverts and 1 illegal tattoo advert was removed;

o 466 samples were elevated and analysed;

o 4 products recalled;

o 10 citations issued/processed;

o 3 emergency control orders were issued;

o 2 premises were closed down;

o 653 complaints lodged with the Health Inspectorate.

Detailed Report

Improvement Notices Issued to Food Business Operators

Five hundred and eighty three improvement notices in terms of article 33 of the Food Safety Act were issued to food business operators by the Health Inspectorate Services. During this period 23 improvement notices were also issued to open market stalls.

This notice is sent to all food business operators following an unannounced inspection by Environmental Health Officers within their establishment. The intention of this notice is to inform food operators about deficiencies noted in their establishments while the operator is given a specific deadline in order to rectify these deficiencies. Though the seriousness of deficiencies might vary, legal action is initiated when major deficiencies are noted.

Haccp Audits

Two HACCP audits were carried out. The Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point is a Food Safety Management System which is obligatory in those food businesses providing high risk foods.

Undertakings

16 undertakings were entered into by the Health Inspectorate, and concerned several food and environmental health related issues.

Undertakings are legal agreements between the operators and the Health Authority specifying deadlines by which deficiencies in their premises should be remedied in compliance with standing legislation. Failure to abide with the agreed deadlines results in Court proceedings being initiated.

Destruction of Food

The amount of foodstuffs destroyed by the Health Inspectorate were 23kg of food and 39.6lts of drinks. These foodstuffs included:

7kg of bakery goods

7.5 kg chicken drumsticks

5.9 kg of beans

2.75 kg vegetable oil

28 lts of softdrinks

11.6 lts of wine.

16 melamine plates were also destroyed following a rapid alert notification.

Legionella Audits and Pool Inspections

Twelve audits at Hotels, and other similar premises to ascertain compliance with Control of Legionella Regulations, 2006 (L.N. 5 of 2006) and the Registration of Cooling Towers and Evaporative Condensers Regulations, 2006 (L.N. 6 of 2006) were performed by the Health Inspectorate.

Eleven swimming pools were inspected during seven audits carried out by the Health Inspectorate to verify compliance with Swimming Pools Regulations, 2005 (L.N. 129 of 2005). No new pools were registered with the Health Authority during this month. This regulation specifies that all swimming pools with the exception of those situated at a single family residence need to register with this Directorate. A list of registered pools can be found in the Directorate’s website mentioned below.

Inspections of Schools

17 schools were inspected to ensure compliance with general hygiene requirements. Such inspections are carried out in private, government or church owned schools and whether, primary, secondary, tertiary or language or special schools.

Abatement Notices

10 abatement notices were issued by the Health Inspectorate in terms of the Public Health Act in view of inspections and audits carried out in the previous days.

Consignments

Fifty consignments of food imported/traded into Malta were also inspected by Environmental Health Officers attached with the Port Health Services within this Directorate.

Consignments Documentary checks

2135 requests for importation/trading of foodstuffs and 4 requests for importation of food supplements were submitted to the Port Health Services.

Personal Imports

1128 personal consignments were also screened by the Port Health Services, of which 15 were rejected.

Ship Sanitation Certificates

Thirty five Ship Sanitation Certificates were issued by the Port Health Services. These inspections are carried out in terms of the International Health Regulations of 2005 and involves the assessment of the general hygienic conditions and control measures undertaken on ships. Such certificate needs to be renewed every 6 months at an authorised port; Malta being an authorised port.

Applications and Consultations

The Health Inspectorate received 174 requests to process applications to operate food and non-food business. Prospective operators who wish to open such businesses are obliged to apply for a permit with the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) and then apply for the actual licence with the competent authority such as the Trade Licensing Unit or Malta Tourism Authority. At every stage, this Directorate is consulted in order to verify suitability of proposed premises.

Control Cards for Narcotic and Psychotropic Substances

2813 control cards for narcotic and psychotropic substances (1049 males and 1764 females) were issued by the Drug Control Unit, which is another unit falling under the Health Inspectorate Services. 226 of these cards were new applicants.

Illegal Advertisements

8 adverts involving Tobacco products and including electronic cigarettes in breach of Tobacco (Smoking Control) Act were noticed on local sites and the respective advertisers and webmasters were instructed to remove, something which was actually complied with.

One advert of tattoo equipment was also noted to be contravention of the Control of Tattooing Act.

Samples

466 samples were elevated by the Health Inspectorate and submitted to the Public Health Laboratory for analysis and/or examination for several parameters.

Recalls

Four products were recalled

Contraventions

Ten contraventions were issued/processed by the Health Inspectorate, seven of which were related to food safety issues:

Two retailers and a packer for not having a traceability system;

A cafeteria and a caterer for various food hygiene issues;

A producer for misleading labelling of a food product and

A retailer for failing to have a HACCP system in place.

Three were environmental health related:

· Two individuals for keeping internal parts of their house dirty and

· One individual for not complying with an undertaking in terms of the Public Health Act.

Emergency Control Orders

Three emergency control orders were issued against operators.

Emergency Prohibition Orders

Two premises were close down by the Health Authority due to imminent risk to public health, as follows:

Papillon Caterers, Triq tal-Handaq, Qormi and

Lelmar Bar, St. Francis Street, Rabat.

These were allowed to reopen once remedial action was taken by the food business operators to remove the risk.

Complaints

575 complaints were lodged with the Directorate which were categorised in one or more category, as follows:

o Food related complaints

106 complaints were related to food. The most common type of food complaints concerned were improper labelling (25 complaints), fitness of food (18 complaints), hygiene of food premises (10 complaints), lapsed durability date (9 complaints), risk of contamination (9 complaints).

o Other Environmental Health related complaints

Another 507 complaints were environmental health related. The most common type concerned were rat/mice infestations (153 complaints), infiltrations (100 complaints), foul smells (35 complaints), keeping of animals in unhygienic conditions (31 complaints), accumulation of refuse (30 complaints), leakage/defective drains (27 complaints).

Note: The number of complaints and the number of categories do not tally, since one complaint received may encompass one or more categories.

The Environmental Health Directorate takes this opportunity to remind the public that it can contact the Health Inspectorate Services between 7:30am and 3:30pm on telephone number 21337333, by calling personally at its offices at Continental Business Centre, Cutrico Buildings, Old Railway Track, Santa Venera or by email complaints.ph@gov.mt

For further information, the public is also encouraged to visit the Directorate’s website at URL: https://ehealth.gov.mt/HealthPortal/public_health/environmental-health/department_for_env_health.aspx or on its facebook page on http://www.facebook.com/pages/Environmental-Health-Directorate-Malta/145027878928626

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