Food safety complaints

All food businesses are regularly inspected by our Food Safety Officers to ensure they comply with the law, but sometimes things can go wrong.

If you are concerned about the standards of food hygiene at a food business in South Holland you can make a complaint to our department. Some of the things you may complain about include:

• poor food handling practices
• poor levels of cleanliness
• sightings of vermin or pests
• food that didn't taste as it should
• suspected food poisoning 
• foreign objects in food served.

Complain about food safety or hygiene

You can complain directly to the supplier or manufacturer of the food, but if you return the food and any of its packaging to them it's difficult for us to investigate. 

If you raise the complaint with us, we will deal with it as promptly as possible. To inform us of a food safety or food hygiene complaint, you should:

• keep any remaining food, or the foreign object
• keep as much of the food packaging as possible and the receipt
• email us on foodhs@sholland.gov.uk

When you have provided the information above, it becomes our property and it may be subject to analysis, which might destroy the product.

Once we receive a complaint we'll decide on the appropriate response and keep you informed of any progress. You can be assured that any complaint will be treated in the strictest of confidence and your personal details will only be released with your permission.

If you want to make a complaint, you can email us foodhs@sholland.gov.uk and provide as much information as possible. We will then contact you within 5 working days.

Investigating food safety complaints

Trading Standards officers investigate complaints about quality, food labelling, ingredients, and weights and measures. Visit the Lincolnshire Trading Standards website (opens new window) for more information. You can also search GOV.UK to find your local Trading Standards office (opens new window).

Investigations don't always result in a prosecution, as informal action often achieves the desired result. We'll decide the most appropriate course of action as per with our enforcement policy. If we decide to prosecute we'll need a signed statement from you and you might be asked to appear in court as a witness. If you're not happy about this, it'd be helpful if you could let us know as soon as possible.