Brisbane food sellers fined $1.2m for safety breaches

Brisbane City Council has slapped food sellers with $1.2 million in fines for safety breaches. WORST SUBURBS FOR BREACHES

DODGY Brisbane food sellers were slugged over $1.17 million in fines last financial year.

The shock statistics have prompted new Labor lord mayoral candidate Patrick Condren to reveal he will investigate the “naming and shaming” of any restaurants caught breaching food safety standards.

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The Courier-Mail can reveal one establishment was slapped with a $21,000 fine

But Brisbane City Council claims it can’t name the restaurant — or any others found to breach food safety standards — under state law.

The fine was for 20 offences that covered food storage, hygiene of food handlers, cleanliness, maintenance, cleaning and sanitising of specific equipment, animals and pests.

Another establishment was fined $40,000.

Mr Condren — who became Labor’s lord mayoral candidate for next year’s local government election after Rod Harding was sensationally dumped at the weekend — said he would look at whether a name-and-shame system for dodgy restaurants could be brought in.

“At Christmas time we get warned about dodgy toys that could seriously injure our kids,” he said.

“Maybe we need to investigate naming and shaming of restaurants that make us crook.”

Council’s community, arts and lifestyle committee chairman Peter Matic said Mr Condren’s comments were “policy on the run”.

“We want to work with local businesses to improve food safety, not discredit them,” Mr Matic said.

An analysis of Brisbane City Council data reveals the suburbs with the most food safety prosecutions and complaints in the past financial year.

Brisbane City topped the list with 10 prosecutions totalling $244,500 million in fines, with Sunnybank recording eight prosecutions totalling $191,200, while Fortitude Valley had five at $103,000, Spring Hill had four at $71,000 and Runcorn three totalling $74,000.

Brisbane City also had the most food safety complaints of any suburb at 87. Fortitude Valley had 36 complaints, followed by Sunnybank (30), South Brisbane (29), Upper Mount Gravatt (22), Chermside (21), Woolloongabba (21), Inala (20), Indooroopilly (18) and Sunnybank Hills (16).

Despite being among the suburbs with the highest number of complaints, there were no prosecutions in Upper Mount Gravatt, Chermside, Woolloongabba, Indooroopilly or Sunnybank Hills.

A spokeswoman said Brisbane City Council carried out more than 4500 food safety inspections in the past financial year to ensure a high standard of food hygiene was maintained across Brisbane.

“Any complaint made to council about food safety is followed up with an on-site inspection and food businesses are not allowed to continue operating if they present a health risk to the public,” the spokeswoman said.

“Unfortunately, there has been a small number of Brisbane food businesses who have not upheld council’s high standard and those businesses have been charged by the court.”