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Spize companies fined S$32,000 for 2018 food poisoning incident

SINGAPORE — Two Spize companies were fined a total of S$32,000 on Thursday (Dec 3) over a mass food poisoning incident in 2018.

The now-closed Spize outlet at River Valley. Spize and related firm Spize Events were convicted of 14 offences related to food safety after 63 people fell ill from eating food they prepared.

The now-closed Spize outlet at River Valley. Spize and related firm Spize Events were convicted of 14 offences related to food safety after 63 people fell ill from eating food they prepared.

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SINGAPORE — Two Spize companies were fined a total of S$32,000 on Thursday (Dec 3) over a mass food poisoning incident in 2018.

Spize and related firm Spize Events were convicted of 14 offences, including possessing food unfit for human consumption, hiring unregistered food handlers and having poor hygiene practices, the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) and Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said in a joint statement on Thursday.

In their sentencing submissions, prosecutors said that there were "extreme hygiene lapses and blatant flouting of food safety regulations in the kitchen of the accused companies".

They also called it "one of the most serious cases of possession of food that is unfit for human consumption".

On Nov 6 in 2018 between 11am and 12pm, Spize supplied 88 bento sets to security firm Brink’s Singapore for a company event. 

The invoice issued to Brink’s stated that the food must be consumed within an hour of delivery. Investigations later revealed that some employees had taken their bento sets home to share with their families.

After consuming the food, 63 out of 96 people fell ill with gastroenteritis symptoms such as diarrhoea and vomiting. Of these, 45 people had to be hospitalised. 

The authorities later found that the food had been contaminated with Salmonella. One dish — belacan egg fried rice — also tested positive for Bacillus Cereus and faecal coliforms.

One person, auxiliary police officer Mohamad Fadli Mohd Saleh, consumed a bento set between 2.53pm and 4pm. He had diarrhoea and vomiting many times that night.

The next morning, he went to a clinic where he was diagnosed with gastroenteritis and was given medication.

On Nov 8, 2018, his condition deteriorated and he became unresponsive. He was taken to the hospital and died on Nov 14, 2018 due to sepsis and multi-organ failure.

As there was insufficient evidence to link Fadli’s death to the negligence of any particular individual, no charges were made against any person, AGC and SFA said.

The operating licences of Spize’s River Valley outlet and Spize Events have been cancelled since Dec 6, 2018.

Spize’s other two outlets at Rifle Range@Temasek Club in Bukit Timah and Simpang Bedok will still be allowed to operate.

DIRTY SHARED KITCHEN 

At the time of the offences, Spize’s River Valley outlet was licensed as a takeaway outlet while Spize Events was licensed as a restaurant.

Both companies shared a kitchen and a common pool of 34 food handlers.

Inspections of the kitchen found Salmonella on a door handle and kitchen surfaces, as well as faecal matter on a chopping board and knife.

There was no hand soap at the wash basin, condiments were left uncovered in the chiller, and knives were carelessly slotted into gaps between food preparation tables, court documents showed.

Some of the food handlers had not been registered with the National Environment Agency and did not attend the mandatory Basic Food Hygiene Course.

“The food hygiene lapses were easily preventable,” the prosecutor said in statements submitted to court on Nov 25, 2020.

“This reveals not only the accused company’s blatant disregard of the law, but also its sheer lack of concern for the safety of its customers. It is no wonder that food was contaminated and the harm caused is directly attributable to the appalling state of the kitchen.”

SFA said on Thursday that it conducts regular inspections of food retail outlets and will take strict enforcement action against food operators that fail to comply with food safety regulations. 

“Food operators play a critical role in upholding public health and safety, and must ensure that food safety regulations are adhered to at all times”, it added.

“This includes having the necessary infrastructure and trained expertise to ensure safe food preparation, handling and sale of food.”

Related topics

Spize food poisoning SFA court crime

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