Industry gives voluntary star rating system the thumbs up
29 July 2011
The restaurant industry has welcomed the move by the NSW Government to roll out a state wide trial of a voluntary star- rated "Scores on Doors" restaurant hygiene rating program.
Minister for Small Business, Katrina Hodgkinson, announced the plans yesterday to begin implementing the program from August 1.
Restaurant & Catering Australia said it believes restaurants and café owners, as well as consumers prefer a star rating system when deciding on which restaurant or café to dine in.
R&CA chief executive officer John Hart said the plan to use the star rating system is "more acceptable to all concerned" rather than the ‘letter grading’ system that was previously offered by the NSW Food Authority and was used in an earlier pilot program with some councils.
Hart said that R&CA had pushed for the change to adopt the ‘star rating’ rating system which is also used in Brisbane's Eat Safe restaurant hydgiene rating program.
He also said adopting the same consistent grading system standard would be beneficial if the program was to be able to be made a national system which R&CA supports.
In supporting the moves however R&CA has also again called on the Government to scrap the "Name and Shame" program saying it believed the two programs "can not work together."
Meanwhile, the NSW Food Authority acted to defend its decision to make the program voluntary.In a statement the Authority responded to an article in the Sydney Morning Herald that raised questions about the effectiveness of a voluntary scheme.The Authority said it gave "full and careful consideration as to whether the Scores on Doors system be introduced as a voluntary or mandatory measure" .
"A comprehensive review of the six month pilot conducted last year found feedback received from businesses and local councils indicated a preference for voluntary participation; while consumers indicated a preference for a mandatory system. The NSW Food Authority needed to balance these opinions and opted for a trial to further inform the decision," the statement said.
"Introducing a voluntary trial will allow the scheme to grow by genuine industry and consumer demand. The industry could utilise it as a marketing tool, highlighting their achievement to increase patronage and revenue, leading to increased competition among local food businesses."The benefits of making this scheme mandatory are currently uncertain. Any additional burden on council resources from a mandatory scheme are also unknown hence the benefit of conducting an extended trial. Uptake of the program by councils will largely be driven by demand from local consumers and ratepayers and by local businesses. Therefore if people want this system in their local area they should make their views known to the council. The Food Authority believes that councils will respond to local demand and will ensure this aspect is considered when the trial is evaluated. This could foreseeably lead to improvement in hygiene compliance and in turn encourage a positive ’cultural’ change within businesses in terms of improved workplace attitudes to food safety and hygiene.
"First and foremost, this 12 month trial is exactly that, a trial of the system that will be reviewed in consultation with stakeholders at its conclusion.
Tags:
food safety |
resaurant and catering australia |
rules and regulations
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