Expanded Food Safety Ordinance Cited to Address Food Poisoning

Davao City (PIA) — City Councilor Joselle Villafuerte, chair of the City Council Committee on Health cited the need to control the food and to extend its regulation outside the school premises to guarantee the safety of public health.

She said the scope in the implementing guidelines of the food safety ordinance must be extended outside the campuses so that food being sold outside the school premises must be guaranteed safe for human consumption.

Villafuerte said the coverage would include even the food catering business.

She revealed one food catering service and one vendor are being investigated by the City Health Office after their respective customers complained of food poisoning after taking the food they served respectively.

Villafuerte said it is the responsibility of the local government unit to monitor its markets, supermarkets, street food vendors and caterers.

She said the current measure is only designed for street food vendors.

The Department of Health 11, City Health Office and the Committee on Health are closely watching the food sold on the streets and catering operations, after several pupils in a local school complained of food poisoning after drinking an expired powdered drink.

She said the fruit juice was sold outside the school premises when the incident happened. (PIA 11-Joey Sem G. Dalumpines)