Portland Health Department Clarifies Reason For Boston Jerk Centre Closure

MORANT BAY, October 11 (JIS):

The Portland Health Department has provided clarity on the reason for the closure of the popular Boston Jerk Centre in the parish, dismissing misinformation floating in the public domain.

Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Sharon Lewis, told Thursday’s (October 10) sitting of the Portland Municipal Corporation that the condemnation of uninspected meat that was intended for sale to the public was at an establishment in the western section of the parish.

“None of the vendors at the Boston Jerk Centre, which is located in the eastern section of Portland, had committed this breach of the [Public Health Act] regulations. So, I hope that this clarifies that matter and clears the name of the Boston jerk vendors,” Dr. Lewis said.

Regarding the development with Boston, she explained that there were issues over the years with some of the food establishments at the facility that required several interventions.

Dr. Lewis pointed out that improvements were noted after the various interventions, but these were short-lived.

On September 6, three of the four jerk stalls were closed due to breaches, while the other was closed a few weeks later.

The health official said the breaches, which varied among the different stalls, included a lack of food handlers permits for some of the vendors, unequipped or malfunctioning hand-washing stations at some stalls, food contact services being unsuitable for food preparation, improper food handling practices, solid waste disposal and management issues and unclean surroundings.

She informed that a reassessment of the first three stalls that were closed, which was done on Thursday, October 3, revealed that many of the breaches had not been rectified.

“Roughly 47 to 70 per cent of the breaches persisted at the different jerk stalls and, as a result, they remain closed,” Dr. Lewis stated, adding that another reinspection is scheduled.

“Despite the closures, we continue to actively engage the jerk vendors to remind them of the requirements under the regulations to facilitate their reopening,” she said.