Hawker blasted for leaving vegetables on floor while next-door stall owner washes area

Hoping to get some bak kut teh in a hawker centre, a diner was left disgusted after witnessing the lack of hygiene at a stall.

Facebook user Alvin Ong took to Complaint Singapore page on Aug 4 after coming across a hawker at Jurong East's Yuhua Market & Hawker Centre casually washing vegetables beside a stall owner who was cleaning the floor.

Ong wrote: "Thinking of having bak kut teh. When I reached, it was already closed. Happened to see this uncle washing 'mei cai' (preserved mustard greens) and leaving it on the floor in the basket. And some of them are washing the floor!!"

Ong shared a video of the uncle dipping 'mei cai' in a tub of water and throwing it into a basket. Ong also posted a photo of a lady in yellow from the neighbouring stall, washing the floor directly beside the basket.

Some netizens were naturally concerned about the way the food was handled by the hawker.

On its website, the Singapore Food Agency(SFA) has provided guidelines to assist licensees (food operators) to upkeep their hygiene standards and to prevent unpleasant and costly incidents involving food borne illnesses.

AsiaOne has reached out to Ong and SFA for comment. 

Hawker stall hanging grilled meat below signboard

Earlier this year, a stall in Beauty World Food Centre was criticised for poor hygiene standards after a diner spotted grilled meat hung from a signboard. 

The diner said that the dusty signboard looked like it has not been cleaned in years. 

Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, the 47-year-old stall owner shared that because of the limited space in his stall, he hung the meat outside to cool them down.

But using the signboard to hang his food is only a temporary measure, he said, adding that it's done only during the weekends when there are more food orders.

ALSO READ:'Third-world resident': Man blasted for washing leg using basin at Tiong Bahru Food Centre

ashwini.balan@asiaone.com

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