TANAH MERAH, Feb 14 (Bernama) -- Kelantan Health Department (JKNK) will deploy a special team to monitor food preparation at Ramadan bazaars during the upcoming fasting month.

Its director, Datuk Dr. Zaini Hussin, said that the team will monitor through the Food Safety and Quality Division of JKNK.

"The strength of this team depends on how many Ramadan bazaars are opened in each area to ensure that the food sold is clean and safe for the public.

"This team will also ensure that those who wish to trade must have food preparation training and vaccinations before they obtain their trading licences," he said.

He told this to reporters after launching the Perdana Circumcision Programme at Tanah Merah Hospital here today.

Dr. Zaini added that for this monitoring, they will take food samples at Ramadan bazaars for analysis to check for food poisoning due to poor quality and contamination.

"In previous years, we did not receive reports of significant food poisoning because traders in this state are very conscious about food health," he said.

In a separate development, Zaini said that the Bachok Hospital is expected to be handed over by the Public Works Department (JKR) to his department in May.

He said that barring any unforseen circumstances, Bachok Hospital will start operating one or two months after the handover.

-- BERNAMA