Food safety scores 'should be displayed by all businesses'

The Food Standards Agency's Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) should be displayed on all store fronts that sell food, a health and safety expert has argued.

Sarah Daniels, a chartered practitioner and co-founder of the Redcat.gb.com health and safety advisory website, argued that food safety standards could be improved nationally if it was compulsory for all businesses to display their scores.

Ms Daniels claimed the scheme provides "clarity and transparency" for customers, making it easier for them to make informed decisions on where they would eat and what they were putting into their bodies.

"It should also be compulsory for councils - or indeed the Food Standards Agency - to have a web-based system too, so you can check before you go," she added.

The effectiveness of the FHRS is consistently displayed as businesses are routinely pulled up for lapses in standards. Food hygiene training is also viewed favourably by the employer, added Ms Daniels.

Scores on the Doors, which the FHRS is based upon, was originally introduced in 2007. So far, around 160 local authorities across the UK are signed up to the scheme.