KUWAIT CITY, Dec 2: Director of Hawally Governorate Inspection Department at the Public Authority for Food and Nutrition (PAFN) Abdullah Al-Kandari revealed that the total number of violations recorded in Hawally in November reached 324, in addition to the issuance of 300 violation arrest reports and closure of 24 food establishments, reports Al-Anba daily. The daily’s staff accompanied a number of the authority’s inspectors in an inspection tour in Hawally recently.

Al-Kandari later confirmed that this inspection resulted in the closure of two restaurants, a café and a fish shop for committing various violations like non-compliance with public sanitation regulations; as a large number of live insects were found in the establishments. A decision on the temporary opening of the erring establishments will be issued soon in order to address the violations, then the inspectors will check the establishments again and submit a report in this regard, he disclosed. He went on to say that in one of the closed establishments, seven workers were caught handling food without a valid health certificate from the competent authorities; so the inspectors issued arrest reports against the employees and the owner of the establishment. He explained that the authority takes measures against those proven to have violated the regulations based on the gravity of the violation.

For example, if someone opens a food establishment without obtaining a health license; an arrest report is written and then submitted to the Public Prosecution. The establishment is allowed to open only for evacuation purposes. The owner must obtain a license to resume the business, he added. On non-compliance with public sanitation regulations, Al-Kandari said the erring establishment is shut down and it is allowed to open temporarily to clean the premises, not to engage in business. Then, the authority’s inspectors will check the establishment again, ensure that the violation is addressed, submit a report in this regard, and issue an administrative decision to open and continue the business, he revealed. For grave violations, such as handling food that is not fit for human consumption; reconciliation is not permissible and the case is forwarded to the prosecution, he concluded.