Food poisoning: Ogun issues 7-day ultimatum to eateries, threatens prosecution

Ogun State government on Sunday gave a seven-day ultimatum to eateries and food outlets in Oke-Ilewo axis of Abeokuta, to address issues bothering on public hygiene.

It said defaulters risked total closure and possible prosecution.

The government accused the eateries of consistently polluting their immediate environment with their “unwholesome practices”.

The Commissioner for Environment, Mr Ola Oresanya, who handed down the ultimatum after an inspection visit, lamented that the eateries ignored several warnings from the government.

He said accumulated fat, oil grease, and other food materials in confined chambers that were not scooped daily was producing microbes releasing toxic substances.

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“Aside from this, it was discovered that they were discharging their untreated wastewater directly into the public drain. Open holes were also seen within their septic tanks holding faecal matters, general poor housekeeping as well as evidence of rat infestation around their stores.

Oresanya assured that the state government monitoring team would continue to enforce the state sanitation laws to avoid unhygienic practices and disease breakdown.