“Close shop” order for food outlets in Alor Setar

Fifteen food outlets were slapped with a two weeks “close-shop” order after they were found to be far below par from the minimum cleanliness levels set by it’s local council.

This came after a cleanliness inspection was conducted by enforcement officers on 31 food outlets by the Kota Setar District Council, last Wednesday.

Its health officer, Dr Abu Hashim Ahmad, said that during the raid, the fifteen outlets, which made up almost half of the number of outlets that were inspected, were ordered to clean up their dirty premises before reopening for business.

“We found the premises to be dirty, the garbage bins overflowing with refuse and the some even had their ‘tube ice’ that were  contaminated, among other things,” he told reporters.

He also pointed out that one particular well known restaurant even had an expired bottle of cordial among other items used for their drinks preparation.

Dr Abu reminded people to be mindful of where they choose to dine out, saying that eating in dirty outlets could lead to diarrhoea, food poisoning, cholera, etc.