AR
UR
With eateries across the UAE working tirelessly to meet the increased demand during the holy month of Ramadan, Dubai Municipality has also increased its efforts to ensure strict compliance with food safety standards.
Dr Naseem Mohammed Rafee, director of Health and Safety Department of Dubai Municipality, stated that the inspection team is monitoring the food contact materials throughout the month of Ramadan along with inspecting tents to ensure that they are adhering to the hygiene requirements.
"Department of Dubai Municipality. Officers from the department are implementing specialized monitoring campaigns across restaurants and cafes in the city to ensure the same," he added.
Annu George, owner of Dubai-based restaurant Back to Grills, affirmed that the entity is adhering to the strict health and safety standards and requirements set by Dubai Municipality. He explained that the same safety standards are maintained during Ramadan, from wearing masks and gloves by all food handlers to ensuring the procurement of temperature-controlled raw materials.
"All food materials are labelled, and date stamped. Food that is served to the customers is quality checked by the chef in charge. We truly go the extra mile to make sure that everything we serve is of the best quality," he added.
A majority of F&B professionals have underlined similar efforts to maintain food safety standards during Ramadan.
“We ensure that the processes to ensure food safety systems are being followed,” said Sanjay Vazirani, CEO, Foodlink Global Restaurants & Catering Services LLC.
Vazirani also talked about certain issues faced by restaurants during the holy month. One of the major challenges includes the limited time schedule, noting that people work 2 hours less than usual during Ramadan. Respecting their needs and work schedules, restaurants ensure prior preparations to deliver the services on time.
"Sometimes, their concentration levels may dip due to fasting so looking after their health and safety is an additional responsibility. We supplement this by adding more staff during this time and ensure more time in monitoring as the number of orders is larger than usual," he added.
Shyjil Hussain, owner of Zam Zam Mandi group of restaurants, puts extra effort and workers during Ramadan.
“We also serve Suhoor in certain branches. So, it requires a huge amount of manpower and management to ensure that food safety is perfect through all our branches. Most of my staff are fasting so we add supplement staff during this period to make sure everything runs smoothly," Hussain added.
All restaurant owners hailed the efforts taken by Dubai Municipality to constantly check and monitor their work which has helped them in improving the quality of their outlets.
As Dubai Municipality follows a comprehensive system for rating restaurants, it helps the entities in improving their services and sustaining their efforts.
Dubai Municipality has an efficient system to check safety under various action points, including infrastructure, training, and processes.
"It's an excellent system. They have audit sheets in which they put in the observations and grade us on all elements. Among our different outlets, it becomes a healthy competition of sorts and keeps the whole team geared up to excel," Vazirani added.
Shyjil Hussain pointed out that some of their outlets have achieved the A rating after being found in compliance with all health and safety regulations. As of now, Dubai Municipality rates restaurants on a scale between A and C on the basis of various factors including hygiene, food raw materials among others.
SOURCE: Khaleej Times