From now on, tourists in Hawaii will be better informed on hygiene and food safety standards when dining out in the state’s resorts.
Part of the state’s new Food Safety Code that was signed into law earlier this year, new color-coded placards are required to be displayed in all restaurants and food service outlets to show diners if recent food inspections have been passed.
Hawaii State Department of Health has devised a three-color rating system.
An outlet with a green placard means it had at least one major hygiene violation at the most recent inspection and it was immediately rectified.
A yellow rating denotes a restaurant had at least one violation which was not corrected straight away.
A red placard will be displayed for the most serious health violations including overflowing sewage, a vermin problem, or other major unsanitary conditions.
Eateries with a red placard will be forced to close to the public until the health hazard is fixed, the Health Department said.
All placards will be placed on the exterior walls and clearly visible to all customers.
"Hawaii consumers will have more peace of mind about being protected from foodborne illnesses and other health hazards when eating out this summer," said Gary Gill, deputy director of environmental health.
The new placard system has been well received by most of Hawaii’s tourism industry groups, especially the Hawaii Restaurant Association, which represents 3,500 businesses in the food service and tourism sectors.
The rules cover all of the state’s 10,000 public dining venues, including hotels, restaurants, convenience stores, lunch wagons, and private catering firms.
