On Tuesday, the Hamilton (New Jersey) Township Council unanimously passed a food safety ordinance that will hike fines on local restaurants that repeatedly fail health and safety inspections.
Ordinance 15-025 increases the current $250 fine to $350 for restaurants that fail food safety inspections three times in a two-year period and stipulates a $500 fine for food establishments that fail food safety inspections four times in a two-year period. Any local restaurant getting four unsatisfactory inspections in a two-year period would have to be closed for at least 72 hours and correct all violations before being allowed to reopen. The council had previously rejected a proposed ordinance to increase the fine to $500 for a third occurrence and $750 for a fourth one, with the council president calling that “a little too intrusive.” In addition to instituting higher fines, the ordinance also requires township food establishments to post their inspection reports in a prominent and easily visible spot near the main entrance of the facility. Prompting the new ordinance was a Hepatitis A outbreak this past November linked to Rosa’s Restaurant and Catering. First a Rosa’s employee contracted Hepatitis A, and then several more area residents were also sickened, although health officials were not sure the later cases were related to the first one. In the months before the outbreak, Rosa’s had received multiple health violations.
The News Desk team at Food Safety News covers breaking developments, regulatory updates, recalls, and key topics shaping food safety today. These articles are produced collaboratively by our editorial staff.
The Food and Drug Administration uses import alerts to enforce U.S. food safety regulations for food from foreign countries. The agency updates and modifies the alerts as needed.
Recent
The 2025 dietary guidelines have just been published and they include a bigger focus on including red meat and fat in the foods Americans eat.
The guidelines, which will be
The Food and Drug Administration uses import alerts to enforce U.S. food safety regulations for food from foreign countries. The agency updates and modifies the alerts as needed.
Recent
As part of its enforcement activities, the Food and Drug Administration sends warning letters to entities under its jurisdiction. Some letters are not posted for public view until weeks or
Si Ji Mei brand Wuhan Egg Sheets with Glutinous Rice are under recall in Canada because of potential contamination with Salmonella.
The recall was triggered by the company, according to
