Welcome to sthelens.gov.uk

Food Complaints

Dealing with Food Complaints

If you have purchased a food item in St Helens and you consider it to be unsafe, or you are unhappy with food safety standards you have encountered, we will investigate to establish whether there is a problem. We receive approximately 200 complaints relating to food or food businesses in the borough each year. These complaints include:

• Foreign bodies in food, e.g. glass, hair, wood
• Unpleasant taste in food
• Poor handling of food by shop assistants
• Dirty condition of food premises
• Suspected food poisoning following eating from a food premises

Food Sampling

The Food Safety team carries out regular food sampling. A sampling programme is prepared each year and samples are taken on a monthly basis and sent for microbiological examination.

Foods sampled usually include open (unwrapped) high-risk foods such as cooked meats and pies, and food that is manufactured or prepared within St Helens borough.

Contact us by email Environmental Health or telephone on 01744 676299.