Food Safety Inspections

What do Public Health Inspectors do?

Public Health Inspectors (PHIs) in Haldimand and Norfolk Counties routinely visit food premises to:

• conduct routine inspections
• do re-inspections; and
• follow-up on complaints and suspected foodborne illnesses.

The premises visited include: restaurants, grocery stores, school cafeterias, farmers’ markets, chip trucks, farm gate sales, hospital kitchens, retirement and long term care homes, and daycare centre kitchens, to mention a few.

What happens during a public health inspection?

During inspections, PHIs look at:

• food storage temperatures, hot and cold
• cooking, reheating and cooling times and temperatures of food
• personal hygiene of employees, including good hand hygiene
• food production methods and procedures
• flow of food through receiving, storage, preparation, and service
• dish and equipment washing and sanitizing procedures
• food sources
• pest control
• methods of garbage collection, holding and disposal
• cleanliness of floors, walls, ceilings, equipment and other surfaces
• if staff hold a Food Handler Training Certificate.

Annual risk assessments are completed at every food premises in Haldimand and Norfolk Counties. During the risk assessment, PHIs consider:

• the types of food sold
• how food is prepared
• the population served
• the compliance record of the food premises
• the premises’ history regarding foodborne illnesses.

The risk assessment will determine if the establishment is high, moderate or low risk. The number of routine inspections a premises receives each year is based on this risk rating:

• a high-risk restaurant will be inspected once every four months
• a moderate-risk restaurant will be inspected once every six months
• a low-risk premises, like a convenience store, will be inspected once every 12 months.

Copies of inspection reports are available from the Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit. Please complete the following form to submit your request.