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On September 13, Detroit City Council voted ‘no’ on a restaurant grading ordinance.
The proposed ordinance would authorize a color-coded grading system for Detroit restaurants for diners to know the standing of the establishment according to periodic health and building inspections.
Many residents called in to voice disapproval of the food grading ordinance, which sought to add an amendment to Subdivision C of the 2019 Detroit City Code. Food, Article II.
The proposed addition is in provisions on Food Grading to “to require the posting of the results of the most recent inspection and evaluation of licensed food service establishments by the Detroit Health Department.”
Food Safety inspections are conducted by the Detroit Health Department (DHD) to reduce the potential for foodborne illness and food poisoning based on the Food and Drug Administration (DFA) standards.
The vote comes on the heals of the temporary and voluntary closure of the popular Downtown Detroit coney, Lafayette Coney Island on Sept. 7. The coney island closed its doors after a viral social media video showed rat droppings inside the restaurant.
According to the city health officials, progress is moving but slowly in getting the establishment up to code and re-opened.
Ahead of the vote, Detroit City Council held a formal session on September 6 to hear reports from the Public Health and Safety Standing Committee on the proposed ordinance.
Councilmember Fred Durhal Jr. said he was in favor of the ordinance during the meeting.
“I’m in support of this ordinance,” Councilmember Fred Durhal Jr. “I believe people should have the right to know the places they frequent to eat are clean. Also deserve to have the option of food safety. I think I heard 1,700 food establishments in 3,000 food establishments documented. We’re talking 10 to 12 inspectors that have to inspect 170 places within a matter of 12 months. That is a heavy caseload.
Before we start building other infrastructure, we need to look at the foundation we have within the cracks and crevices that already exist. Years ago, you had to go to the health department and get a food handlers card; now the city is charging $200 for a certification that many low-income residents cannot afford.”
After pushback from minority restaurant owners to vote no on the ordinance on Sept. 6, Council President Mary Sheffield made a motion to postpone the ordinance start date to January 2023 due to the concerns shared on rising food costs, restaurant equipment as well as the lack of workers.
Currently, restaurants undergo a routine inspection every 30 days and a follow-up inspection occurs 2 to 4 weeks after.
“The state law does require us to verify correction of priority and priority foundation,” said Detroit Health Department Environmental Health Manager, Scott Withington. “Which are the two serious violation categories.”
According to the Michigan Modified 2009 Food Code, a priority item is defined as items whose application “contributes directly to the elimination, prevention or reduction to an acceptable level, hazards associated with foodborne illness or injury and there is no other provision that more directly controls the hazard.”
A priority foundation item is outlined as an item “whose application supports, facilitates or enables one or more priority items”, such as personnel training, infrastructure or necessary equipment, the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) management system plans, documentation or record keeping, and labeling.
According to the Detroit Health Department, “Priority violations are the most serious category of food code violations and directly contribute to foodborne illness outbreaks or food poisoning occurrences. The second most serious violations are Priority Foundation, and the least serious are Core. An inspection only results in compliance when zero Priority or Priority Foundation violations are cited, or when all are corrected.”
The Detroit Health Department (DHD) food safety unit licenses and inspects over 1,900 food establishments. Since August 2016, the Detroit Health Department has inspected about 2,300 open and closed establishments.
The Detroit Health Department conducts 200-400 inspections per month. Approximately 3,500 inspections were conducted in 2018. Establishments are scheduled for routine inspections based on the complexity of their food preparation.
There are currently 10 city health inspectors employed, with plans to increase to 15-17 inspectors.
Should an establishment be found in violation, most discrepancies are corrected during the time of inspection. However, Priority Foundation violations should be corrected within 30 days and Core violations should be corrected within 90 days. A follow-up check-in is conducted by DHD representatives
Councilmember Fred Durhal Jr. reminded fellow council members and the public of history of safety and health of food handling in regard to the city of Detroit used to implement food handling cards years ago, which should be brought back because $200 is quite expensive to those that can’t afford that type of food safety certification.
Currently, no health department in Michigan utilizes a grading system. Instead, an inspection is marked as compliant or not compliant based on the type of violation(s) cited and whether or not they were corrected.
For information on the latest inspection history of Detroit-area restaurants, check out the city’s food safety inspection online database.
DHD urges the public to pay attention to restaurant “cleanliness, maintenance, food handling practices, the presence of management and the appearance of employees (such as clean clothes and hands, hair coverings when required, etc).”
Within five days of receiving a food safety complaint, city health inspectors begin investigating the allegations.
The Detroit Health Department’s food safety unit encourages residents to file a food safety complaint if anyone believes that food served by a Detroit food establishment caused a person or a family member to become ill, was prepared, handled, or stored in unclean conditions, or broke food safety laws in some other way.
If an incident has occurred, call (313) 876-0135 or complete an online complaint form found at detroitmi.gov/departments/detroit-health-department
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