THE MINISTRY OF Health has reminded food vendors that in order to carry on a food business, they must be registered and be in receipt of a licence from the Ministry of Health.
Registration forms and licences may be obtained from the polyclinic in the area in which the business will operate.
Under the Health Services (Food Hygiene) Regulations, a food business means “any trade or business for the purposes of which any person engages in the handling of food, and includes the undertaking of a stall, canteen, club, school or institution, whether carried out for profit or not”.
Persons operating such businesses without a licence are guilty of an offence under the regulations and will be liable, on conviction, to a fine of $5 000, or imprisonment for 12 months or both. In the case of a continuing offence, there will be a further fine of $200 per day.
For more information, members of the public should contact the Environmental Health Department at the polyclinic closest to them. (BGIS)
