Health Law

Australian Restaurant Fined for Unsafe Aioli

By Dan Flynn and Suzanna Schreck

A restaurant in New South Wales, Australia had to pay a penalty when 170 people fell ill with Salmonella after eating there earlier this year.

Investigators with the New South Wales Food Authority concluded that the cause of the January Salmonella outbreak at the Burger Bar in the town of Albury was a contaminated raw egg aioli product.

The take-out restaurant was fined for selling unsafe food as well as handling food in an unsafe manner.  The fine was $660 for each infraction.

According to Australian Food News, the New South Wales Food Authority was contacted by the Greater Southern Area Health Service after complaints of illness were reported in January.  The restaurant's owner cooperated with the request to temporarily shut down the restaurant down while food and environmental sampling was conducted.

The Burger Bar's failure to meet the Australian Food Standards Code will put it on the country's Name and Shame list, a public website.  Placement on the list is considered punishment in itself because consumers can access the information and make informed decisions about restaurants' food safety records.

Full post as published by Food Safety News on September 24, 2010 (boomark / email).