BUTTERWORTH, Jan 17 — A coffee factory, which has been operating for 69 years, was ordered to be temporarily closed after rat droppings were found on its premises during an inspection operation by the Seberang Perai Utara (SPU) District Health Office today.
SPU District Health Office senior assistant health officer (environment), Mohamad Amin Ahmad Zubir said the premises was ordered closed for 14 days and was only allowed to perform cleaning work.
“The closure notice today was under Section 11 of the Food Act 1983 whereby the premises flouted the food safety regulation and was directed to shut down for 14 days starting today. If any processing work is found, they can be charged in court,” he told reporters.
He said the factory could make an application for reinspection by the Health Office within the 14 days and could operate as normal if it succeeded in complying with the stipulated cleanliness standards.
He said the Certificate of Responsibility on Food Safety (MeSTI) obtained by the factory was suspended for three months, other than the halal status it received, until it was approved to resume operation.
In the same operation, the SPU branch of the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP) had opened three investigation papers and conducted seizures of controlled items worth RM13,000 at a ‘nasi kandar’ premises which also conducted retail trading. — Bernama
