Ontario MOH Considers Adopting Red, Yellow, Green Food Safety Inspection System

June 27, 2005
The What’s On Report
Kostuch Publications Limited

An Ontario-wide green (pass), yellow (conditional pass) and red (closed) food safety restaurant-rating system could be sparked by recent articles and an editorial on "Dirty Dining" in the Toronto Star. The original "Dirty Dining" series in that paper resulted in the implementation of that system, tagged DineSafe, in Toronto which is still the only jurisdiction in Canada to adopt it. (See Toughest Food Premises Inspection Program Now in Force in Toronto, January 2, 2001.) It’s not a co-incidence when you conisder that the DineSafe program was forced through by Dr. Sheela Basrur, Toronto's former medical officer of health, who is now chief medical officer of health (MOH) and assistant deputy minister of public health for the province since February, 2004.

The new Toronto Star reports are based on a 2004 internal audit by the Ontario Ministry of Health which was "leaked" to the Star. It shows that all of the 37 provincial health units are failing to meet provincial minimum standards for inspection frequency which call for: three inspections per year of high risk locations (full menu restaurants, hospitals, nursing homes, etc); two inspections of medium risk (fast food restaurants, bakeries, etc); and one inspection per year of low risk (convenience stores, etc). Toronto also fell below recommended frequency standards, and was also behind several other units, coming in at 90% of in high-risk inspections completed, compared to Huron at 100%, Brant at 99%, Sudbury at 98%, Hamilton at 94% and Perth at 91%. "Unfortunately, we don't have a fully transparent system across Ontario," said Basrur. She told the Star that she was disappointed by the audit findings, which were not released publicly.

The audit also reviewed the number of tickets, fines or closures issued to food establishments, described overall as "a surprisingly low number." The Toronto unit closed 35 restaurants last year, issued 318 tickets, 137 summons to court and 46 orders last year, and is described as "the most vigorous food safety enforcement regime in Ontario" according to the ministry audit. The report shows that many health units initiated less than a dozen legal actions against food establishments last year. "The DineSafe program has driven a lot of system and policy changes which, I think, have been conducive to food safety," Basur said. "Other municipalities and health units have not yet followed along perhaps because they're waiting for the province to take the lead."