Food hygiene ratings for city takeaways amongst best in country

A new study has revealed that food hygiene standards at takeaways and sandwich shops in the Exeter City area are amongst the best in the country.

With 86.6% of its applicable businesses rated either good (4) or very good (5), Exeter City was found to be well above the national average of 71.9%.

The Food Standards Agency website holds the data from inspections carried out by each local authority under the Food Hygiene Ratings Scheme. Every business that serves food is awarded with a hygiene rating between 0 and 5 following an inspection.

64.2% of the 67 takeaways and sandwich shops in Exeter City had the top rating of 5, which was again above the national average of 49.4%. No premises received a zero rating at their latest inspection.

Food establishments in Wales and Northern Ireland are required to clearly display the rating that they receive under the Scheme, with England to follow suit from 2019.

Linda Firth, Director at LoveMyVouchers.co.uk added, “The study was conducted to raise awareness about the importance of food hygiene ratings, as they are not always obvious for takeaways, particularly in England. Many of the top food ordering websites do not currently display the ratings, so customers need to be mindful of this when placing an order.”

The best performing council area was North Devon, with a staggering 100% rated 4 or 5.