The number of enforcement orders issued to Irish food businesses fell by 21% last year, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has said. However, this is the second highest number of such orders ever issued.

Enforcement orders are issued to food businesses which fail to maintain certain standards. The most serious of these - closure orders - are served where it is deemed that ‘there is or is likely to be a grave and immediate danger to public health at or in the premises'.

According to the FSAI, 113 enforcement orders were issued in 2014, 96 of which were closure orders.

In 2013, 144 enforcement orders were issued - the highest number ever. However 2014's figure is the second highest. Orders were issued to a wide range of businesses including restaurants, pubs, grocery shops and butchers.

While welcoming the fall since 2013, FSAI chief executive, Prof Alan Reilly, said that it was too early to say whether this is part of a downward trend.

"There can be no room for complacency when it comes to food safety. Every enforcement order is one too many and serves as a warning that food businesses need to be vigilant at all times to ensure full compliance with food regulations," he commented.

He said that while ‘most' food businesses maintain high standards and are compliant with food safety legislation, ‘we continue to encounter cases where consumers' health is jeopardised through a lack of compliance'.

"This is unacceptable and will be met with the full rigours of the law," he added.

Details of businesses that have been issued with enforcement orders can be seen on the FSAI website here