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DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — No state food inspection reports have been posted online for public view since December, according to Iowa officials.
The Food and Consumer Safety Bureau of the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals has been migrating to a new website and software and is still transferring records, according to department spokesman David Werning.
The bureau oversees inspection of Iowa food establishments and enforces the state's food and sanitation laws, the Dubuque Telegraph Herald reported (http://bit.ly/XcFejO ).
"We hope the new site will be up (and) available within two weeks," Werning said. "We are in the final throes of the migration process, and we are anxiously awaiting the unveiling, too."
Tim Link, an environmental sanitarian with the city of Dubuque Health Department, said inspections are being performed as usual.
All Iowa food establishments, which include grocery stores, restaurants and convenience stores, must be inspected at least once every six months or according to a process based on how much food a business handles. Restaurants that prepare and serve food on a daily basis are inspected more than convenience stores that sell prepackaged food.
Businesses are still required by law to post copies of their most-recent inspections in their establishments.
The bureau's software overhaul is about $500,000 and has been mostly paid for with federal grants. Werning said the delay will be worth the wait.
"People will be able to find more information on these establishments, including history of corporate ownership, and the new software provides for real-time reporting," he said.
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Information from: Telegraph Herald, http://www.thonline.com
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