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LOCAL NHS HOSPITAL ACHIEVES FIRST FOOD HYGIENE AWARD
Monday 28 April 2008
The hospital, on Neidpath Road, was recently awarded the Eat Safe Award, in recognition of its excellence in food hygiene and food safety management.
The scheme was launched by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in Northern Ireland in 2003 and was rolled out across Scotland three years ago. Already there are more than 400 Eat Safe Award recipients across the country.
The scheme was introduced to act as an incentive to caterers to strive for high food hygiene and food safety management standards, and each Eat Safe recipient is awarded with a recognisable sign of excellence. Eat Safe also aims to improve public confidence, reassuring consumers that their food has been prepared with the utmost care.
The dedicated staff in Hay Lodge Hospital's catering department supply daily meals for patients at the hospital, as well as residents at other residential establishments, which provide care.
Peter Midgley, Head of Food Law Enforcement Branch, Food Standards Agency Scotland, was delighted to announce the award and hopes it is the first of many in the area.
He added: "We are thrilled to announce this award - the first in the Scottish Borders Council area - and hopefully it will act as encouragement to other catering establishments in the area to aim for the very highest standards in food hygiene. Congratulations to the NHS Borders' catering team at Hay Lodge for this fantastic achievement."
Caroline Herkes, Catering Manager for NHS Borders, said: "High food hygiene and food safety management standards are a priority for all NHS catering services and we are delighted that the efforts of the Hay Lodge Hospital catering staff in applying and maintaining these standards has been recognised and rewarded."
Councillor Len Wyse, Executive Member for Environmental Services at Scottish Borders Council, added: "We all like to know that the food we are eating has been prepared with the utmost care. This achievement shows how seriously the NHS and SBC take this issue and I'm delighted to see that their hard work has been recognised with the presentation of this award."
31 of Scotland's 32 Local Authorities have given their backing to the scheme, which was launched following discussions between the FSAS, the Society of Chief Officers of Environmental Health of Scotland, the Scottish Food Advisory Committee (SFAC), Scottish Local Authorities and the FSA in Northern Ireland.
Eligible establishments are assessed for the Eat Safe Award as part of scheduled food hygiene inspections carried out by Environmental Health. The issue and control of certificates is through local authorities and Awards are reviewed at every planned food hygiene inspection.
More information on the Food Standards Agency Scotland and the Eat Safe Scheme in particular can be found at www.food.gov.uk.
ENDS
Issued on behalf of the Food Standards Agency Scotland by Mackenzie PR. For further information please call the FSAS on (01224) 285 100, or Paul Beaton at Mackenzie PR on (01224) 580 188, or email paul@mackenziepr.co.uk
