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Food safety

Environmental Health Officers aim to ensure that all food and drink intended for human consumption by food businesses is produced, stored, distributed or handled without risk to the health and safety of the consumer.

Food safety is a major part of the environmental health officer's work. Our job is to ensure that food business supply wholesome and safe food produced in a clean, hygienic manner.

The aim of these pages is to provide our customers with information and advice about food safety and the steps we can take when contraventions are discovered.

Food hygiene inspections

Food safety legislation requires that all food on sale is safe to eat and is applicable to all food businesses from manufacturers and distributors to caterers and retail shops. The council is responsible for enforcement in approximately 2,500 premises and in addition to proactive inspection, we also undertake some other functions in relation to food businesses:

  • Food safety complaint investigations
  • Registration of food premises
  • Routine food sampling programme
  • Walsall MBC’s Clean Food Premises Award.
  • Approval of meat, dairy and fish products plants

We are required to inspect and approve any food premises producing products of animal origin under Regulation (EC) 853/2004.

These premises require in-depth inspections and detailed record keeping:  If you wish to find out more details about these requirements then please email foodsafety@walsall.gov.uk.

Food alerts are reported by the Food Standards Agency to be actioned appropriately, in accordance with the authority's documented food hazard warnings procedure. Details of any warnings related to products can be found on the Food Standards Food Alert page.  

Visit our food hazard warnings page for more information.

Investigation of food poisoning and related foodborne diseases

The section investigates all cases of notifiable food-related including food poisoning outbreaks and infectious disease reported via the appropriate channels, in conjunction with the Health Protection Agency.

Your comments on our service

If you would like to comment please complete our Environmental health division food safety questionnaire (PDF 33KB)

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Contact us

Public Protection Services
Environmental Health Division
Challenge Building
Hatherton Road
Walsall
WS1 1DJ

Telephone 01922 652210
Fax 01922 630697
Email publichealthteam@walsall.gov.uk