A new study has revealed the best and worst places in Northern Ireland for food hygiene ratings.
The report by online training provider High Speed Training showed that NI has the highest food hygiene rating of all regions in the UK
The report, which analysed Food Standards Agency (FSA) data for over 230,000 food businesses across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, found that in Northern Ireland, the average food hygiene rating across all food establishments was 4.69 from over 6,700 premises.
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Mid and East Antrim has the highest rating in the country, with an average of 4.81 and was followed closely by Lisburn and Castlereagh City and Newry, Mourne and Down.
The full table of results:
1. Mid and East Antrim - 4.8 - 447 premises
2. Lisburn and Castlereagh City - 4.76 - 352 premises
3. Newry, Mourne and Down - 4.75 - 730 premises
4. Mid Ulster - 4.74 - 521 premises
5. Causeway Coast and Glens - 4.72 - 730 premises
5. Fermanagh and Omagh - 4.72 - 443 premises
6. Antrim and Newtownabbey - 4.7 - 355 premises
7. Derry City and Strabane - 4.67 - 513 premises
8. Belfast City - 4.64 - 1,530 premises
9. Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon- 4.63 - 609 premises
10. Ards and North Down - 4.57 - 507 premises
Belfast has the second-highest average rating in the whole of the UK when compared with other larger towns and cities (with over 1,000 establishments).
The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) is a partnership with local authorities in England, Wales & Northern Ireland. The scheme aims to provide customers with information as to how well a business is upholding food hygiene and safety standards.
Following regular inspections, ratings are devised based on the standard of food handling hygiene, the physical condition of the premises & facilities, and food safety management practices.
Causeway Coast and Glens dropped from 1st position in 2019 to 5th position in 2022, although its average rating still increased by 0.01 to 4.72.
Ards and North Down has the lowest rating in NI, however, the gap between the top region and the bottom region is only 0.24 which is the smallest spread of any region in the UK.
The report also found that more than 1 in 10 takeaways across NI scored a 3 or below for their food hygiene rating.
Eilidh Paton, Owner of Alba Food Safety Consultancy and Chartered Environmental Health Officer, said: "Food Hygiene inspections and ratings are extremely important. From a legal perspective, they ensure businesses are compliant, but mostly, they are designed to help businesses provide safer food.
“It also gives consumers the assurance that businesses are safe to eat in as they are regularly inspected by competent officers."
Richard Anderson, Head of Learning Development at High Speed Training comments: “As our analysis shows, on a whole, ratings are fairly high across the whole of the UK with every single region in the UK improving their average food hygiene score from 2019.
"However, for the proportion of establishments with a low hygiene rating, it can be extremely off-putting for customers and ultimately have a significant impact on your reputation and profitability as a business.
“There’s definitely more some establishments can do to improve their hygiene rating, firstly ensuring that all relevant staff have up to date food hygiene training and are aware of their specific responsibilities. It’s then a case of implementing good practices every day to stay on top of hygiene standards.
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