A field inspector from the Makkah Municipality puts a closure notice on the entrance of a restaurant in Makkah as containers of rotten meat are confiscated from the premises. — Okaz photoRaid Al-Malki Okaz/ Saudi GazetteMAKKAH — A field committee from the health department at the Makkah Municipality shut down two restaurants for repeated health code violations. The same committee also fined 27 other restaurants for various violations including serving rotten meat and preparing food in an unhygienic environment. The inspections were part of the municipality's summer campaign to ensure the city's eateries abide by health codes. The committee was ordered by Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, Emir of Makkah region, to increase inspections after a well-known restaurant in Makkah was caught trying to smuggle rotten meat to one of its branches. Recently, the committee closed down another restaurant in Makkah that was serving rotten meat to customers. A source in the Makkah municipality said its inspectors give restaurant owners plenty of chances to rectify problems. For the first offense, the restaurant's owner is issued a warning and fined SR1,000. If the violation is repeated, a second warning is issued and the fine is increased to SR5,000. The third offense results in a SR5,000 fine and closure of the restaurant for a period of two weeks. The restaurant is closed for good on the fourth offense. On Monday, 15 people were hospitalized after they suffered from food poisoning after eating at a restaurant east of Taif. Five people were released shortly after receiving treatment while ten others remained under observation. Earlier this week, Makkah Municipality closed a well-known international fast food chain in the city center after four people suffered from food poisoning. ? At the time, Abdullah Al-Zaidi, Deputy Head of the municipality's Ajyad Branch, said a committee comprising representatives from the Ministry of Health, Department of Environmental Health and a health supervisor from the municipality took several food samples from the restaurant and confirmed that they contained microbes that sent four people to the hospital. ? “With the holy month of Ramadan drawing near and malls, supermarkets, foodstuff shops and restaurants witnessing a flurry of activity, our goal is to guarantee the cleanliness and hygiene of food shops. We want to ensure that the health of residents and pilgrims is not in danger," Al-Zaidi was quoted as saying.
