Hygiene programme for Galle Face Green vendors

Having found that the highest numbers of street vendors are along the Galle Face Green, measures are being taken by the Colombo Municipality to carry out hygiene programmes and design an outlet for these vendors to prepare and sell their food on the spot.

CMC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ruwan Wijayamuni said that during inspections it was found that these vendors do not prepare their food at the premises incurring a time lag of about seven to eight hours between preparation and consumption of food.

Wijayamuni said consuming such food will increase chances of infection and may cause food poisoning, allergies and

CMC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ruwan Wijayamuni said that during inspections it was found that these vendors do not prepare their food at the premises incurring a time lag of about seven to eight hours between preparation and consumption of food

in worst cases typhoid and hepatitis A.

To reduce the time lag Wijayamuni said that the CMC is working together with the University of Moratuwa to design an outlet that will enable street vendors to cook and sell their food on the spot.

Having found that water is obtained from a nearby toilet belonging to the Ports Authority, measures are also being taken to carry out awareness programmes to educate them on proper hygienic standards and establish a system to provide clean pipe borne water. “The number of cases being reported is just the tip of the ice berg. The main reason these businesses are thriving is because of the social demand. If people refrain from eating in such unhygienic places the demand will decrease and these businesses will eventually die out.

Over the past few years there have been no noticeable changes in hygienic standards and there is a dire need to improve existing standards to ensure the safe consumption of food,” he said.

Wijayamuni said that they were trying to promote the ‘open-kitchen’ style of cooking so that consumers could ascertain the safety standards of the food they ate.

He further said that measures were also being taken to carry out hygiene programmes for ‘achcharu’ vendors at Fort in the coming weeks.

The number of cases being reported is just the tip of the ice berg. The main reason these businesses are thriving is because of the social demand. If people refrain from eating in such unhygienic places the demand will decrease and these businesses will eventually die out