Tingkat, catering businesses highlight safety standards after firm loses its licence

Steps they take include discarding unused ingredients, employing food hygiene officers

- Jordan Loo

Tingkat delivery and catering companies told The Straits Times they have strict measures in place to ensure food safety and quality.

These include discarding unused ingredients on a daily basis to ensure freshness, and employing food hygiene officers to oversee food production in central kitchens where food is prepared. 

The issue came under the spotlight on May 10, when the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) cancelled the licence of catering firm Sakura Buffet following complaints about catered meals that five online businesses had delivered to homes. These complaints involved undercooked or mouldy food, as well as the presence of foreign matter, such as hair and insects, in food.

Investigations found that all the meals had been supplied by Sakura Buffet, and that another seven online businesses were also linked to it. SFA said checks at Sakura Buffet’s premises in Geylang Bahru subsequently found food safety lapses such as dirty premises and the false labelling of timestamps on packed food.

One of Sakura Buffet’s former directors is also facing charges for allegedly owing workers some $430,000 in unpaid wages.

ST contacted 26 companies, five of which responded, to shed light on their food safety practices. 

For instance, ingredients are delivered on a daily basis and extra ingredients are not used for subsequent meals in the interest of safety and freshness, said food hygiene officer Stanley Ng of tingkat business Homely Delights, which serves 200 meals a day.