People looking to celebrate a romantic meal out for Valentine’s Day are being urged to check the hygiene ratings of where they are planning to eat.

Stafford Borough Council inspects hundreds of eating out venues across the area to ensure they are up to scratch - with the results displayed at www.food.gov.uk/ratings

Each business is given a food hygiene rating on a scale from 0 to 5 when it is inspected by the borough council.  The top rating is ‘5’ - which means the hygiene standards are very good. The bottom is ‘0’ - which indicates urgent improvement is required.

Of the 1300 food outlets in the borough 73% have been given the highest rating by the council and more than 95 percent of all the businesses have a satisfactory rating of 3 or higher. Many outlets display their rating via a certificate or sticker on the premises - but they can also be checked out online.

And with Cupid’s favourite holiday coming up, the council wants people to go online and find out about the hygiene of the local venues.

Councillor Ian Fordham, Cabinet Member for Environment at the council, said: “We don’t want a romantic evening to become a nasty memory due to illness.

“The health and wellbeing of our community is one of our top priorities - and I would encourage our residents and visitors to take the time to check the food hygiene ratings before eating out for any occasion.”

Information on all eating out places across Stafford Borough can be found at www.food.gov.uk/ratings. You can also check out regulations about allergens in food from www.staffordbc.gov.uk/allergyalerts

Press Release No 6104