Food and drug safety ministry finds 58 restaurant violations

The food and drug safety ministry said it found 58 restaurants violating food hygiene rules during summer inspections of delivery outlets and eateries that use eggs as a main ingredient.

The ministry said it undertook the sweep to strengthen hygiene management as summer demand rises and to address Salmonella food-poisoning concerns at restaurants using eggs as a main ingredient. It conducts quarterly checks on popular delivery foods with local governments and plans to expand the range of inspected items according to seasonal and other consumption patterns.

The inspections, conducted with local governments from July 13 to 17, covered 4,915 restaurants, prioritising businesses penalised in the past two years or with no inspection record.

Of 2,510 delivery restaurants inspected, 18 were in breach for unclean kitchens, employees not wearing hair coverings or masks, missed health checks and improper storage or sale of expired products. Of 2,405 restaurants using eggs in foods including gimbap and toast, 40 had violations including missed health checks, failures to meet facility standards and unhygienic food handling. Local governments will take administrative action and check within six months whether the businesses have made improvements.

Inspectors collected 160 prepared-food samples to test for food-poisoning bacteria. A gimbap sample exceeded the standard for Staphylococcus aureus, and local authorities plan administrative action against the restaurant.