Ministry officials during an inspection campaign.
DOHA: The Ministry of Municipality and Environment represented by municipalities has launched inspection drive on food outlets ahead of Eid Al Adha to ensure they are complying with hygiene rules.
The municipalities of Al Wakra, Al Rayan, Al Khor and Al Zakhira have declared their action plans to inspect the outlets during the festivity days.
Health Monitoring Unit of Al Wakra Municipality has deployed the inspectors in two shifts to cover the outlets selling items which have more demands during Eid Al Adha like sweets, chocolates, dry fruits and fresh fruits, said a release.
The inspection drive is also focusing on butcheries, restaurants offering Arab traditional foods and commercial complexes because they attract more customers during festival.
The drive aims at ensuring that the products are safe and they were stored properly and prepared in hygienic way forcing the outlets to comply with the health rules. Appropriate action has been taken against food outlets which have failed to comply with health requirements.
The unit has taken a number of actions and plans to serve the public in order to achieve its objectives in maintaining the health and safety of citizens and expatriates. The Municipality has made a comprehensive plan for inspection before and during Eid Al Adha.
The plan aims at intensifying the inspection campaigns on all food outlets, restaurants, cafeterias, grocery stores, vegetables and fruits shops located within the municipality of Al Wakra and ensuring that they comply with the health requirements.
The plan will also cover butcheries and fish markets where veterinarian doctors will be deployed to follow up the situation on daily basis.
Food samples will be taken from outlets for laboratory tests to ensure their safety for human consumption and surprise raids will be made to inspect the shops.
The plan also means to prepare an awareness plan for increasing health and nutrition education among shop owners, employees and the consumers by distributing brochures among them regarding food safety.
The municipalities will receive complaints round-the-clock and take action immediately against erring outlets.
Health Monitoring Unit at Al Rayyan Municipality has made a special action plan to monitor the commercial outlets which has started implementing it and will continue during Eid Al Adha Eid holidays.
Under the action plan, the inspectors will intensify inspection on shops selling, preparing and processing sweets and selling nuts.
A work schedule of veterinary doctors was prepared for the private slaughterhouses operating in Al Rayyan and Muaither to monitor slaughtering operations of sacrificial animals during Eid Al Adha.
The inspectors have been directed to conduct inspection tours in various residential areas at Al Rayyan Municipality, to prevent slaughtering outside the designated slaughterhouses during Eid. The Department of Health Supervision will receive complaints round the clock.
As part of preparations for Eid Al Adha, the Health Monitoring Unit of Al Khor and Al Zakhira Municipality carried out a number of inspection campaigns which covered including slaughterhouses and butcheries, to ensure their compliance with the Human Food Control Law No. 8 of 1990.
