Kenji Bakery re-opens following sanitary improvements

Two weeks ago News Five dropped a bombshell when we followed the health inspector into a well known Belize City bakery and found an assortment of code violations that destroyed even the heartiest of appetites. Today, Janelle Chanona returned to the scene of the crime … and is happy to report that some positive changes have been made.

Janelle Chanona, Reporting
After twelve days of mandated closure, this morning Kenji Bakery was back in business.

The smell of freshly baked bread was strong on Baymen Avenue as owner Eva Wang eagerly escorted News Five through her newly renovated building.

Eva Wang, Owner, Kenji Bakery
?We paint, we clean and fix everything.?

True to her word, inside, the floors had been scrubbed clean, walls had been washed and repainted, food preparation areas were clear of debris, windows had been sealed, workers wore protective head gear while outside, a new sewer pipe was in place and evidence of a massive roach and rat extermination campaign lay in the drain outside. According to Wang, she?s also planning to build a flour room to properly store ingredients.

Eva Wang
?We make a flour room to put in the flour, yeah make it close to the material.?

And tonight Wang wants her customers to come back.

Eva Wang
?I want to make good quality for everybody. Yeah. Good quality, everything good quality, good.?

Janelle Chanona
?How did things get so bad Eva? Is that going to happen again??

Eva Wang
?I don?t think so. No, no more. No more trouble. I don?t want any trouble you know. I need everything good, everything okay, same to everybody.?

Two weeks ago, public health officials shut down the establishment after inspectors found evidence of rats, roaches and raw sewage too close for comfort to the baked goods. This afternoon Senior Public Health Inspector Mark Bernard told us subsequent checks show Kenji is clean.

Mark Bernard, Senior Health Inspector
?They accomplish about eighty percent of the problems that they had and we decided to open and allow them to continue. The objective was not to put them out of business; the objective was to let them get their act together to ensure that the public eats safe food. Basically there is still a little more cleaning to do, fix the bathrooms. We feel satisfied that they have tried to comply with the minimum public health standards. I believe they have exceeded public health standards.?

And to make sure there is no slippage in standards, Bernard says intense public scrutiny should make sure there?s none of that.

Mark Bernard
?They have lost some business no doubt, they have lost some customers and I hope the public have faith in the Public Health Department that we gave them permission to open, so it?s safe to back in and purchase. We will be keeping a sharp eye on them and make sure they don?t get back into that stage. As I said, I?m sure they will not allow themselves to reach back that stage because the consequence will be we?ll close down again.?

So I only had one thing left to do … close my eyes … and take a big bite.

Reporting for News Five, I am Janelle Chanona.

The Public Health Department would like to advise all businesses that inspectors will accompany officials issuing trade licenses. Any business found to be operating in substandard conditions risks penalties and possible closure. We would also like to clear up some confusion in the public’s mind over the name of the bakery that was shut down. It was Kenji Bakery on Baymen Avenue and not Kee’s Bakery located on the Northern Highway. Kee’s, which delivers bread around the country, was not cited or shut down for any health violations.