New Food Hygiene Rating Scheme for Ilfracombe eateries

Ilfracombeites who are organising a festive meal out this Christmas are being advised to check out the food hygiene rating of local restaurants, as well as the menu.

The recent introduction of the national Food Hygiene Rating Scheme across North Devon makes it easier for customers to identify venues in our local area that have good standards of food hygiene. North Devon Council have been carrying out inspections at restaurants, pubs, hotels, cafes, takeaways and other local businesses that sell or serve food before rating them from 0 to 5 to reflect their level of hygiene standards.

The new rating scheme has replaced the district's former 'Scores on the Doors' scheme, with all food businesses in North Devon having their new rating listed on the official government website. Christmas partygoers can also look out for the distinctive green and black stickers that businesses are encouraged to display to tell customers the rating they were given.

On the food standards agency website you can now view the Hygiene rating of over 200 establishments in Ilfracombe that serve food to the public. Of the businesses assessed, the majority of Ilfracombe's establishments (178 in total) gained a maximum food hygiene rating of 5, 34 gained a rating of 4, 7 were awarded a "generally satisfactory" rating of 3 and 6 of our local businesses only scored a 1 which indicates that a "major improvement is necessary".

When a business is inspected by North Devon Council, the officer will look at how well the business is meeting the law on food hygiene. This includes:

• How hygienically the food is handled in preparation, cooking, cooling and storage.    

• Condition and structure of the building, including cleanliness, lighting, ventilation and equipment.  

• How the business manages and records what it does to make sure food is safe.   

Officers will then explain to the person who owns or manages the business if improvements need to be made and how they can achieve a higher rating. 

Council leader Councillor Brian Greenslade says: "There are some fabulous places to eat in North Devon, where customers go because of the good food and great atmosphere. However, apart from just checking out the menu, we'd encourage them to check out the food hygiene rating as well."