Officers of the Local Police who served during the Carnival festivities on the streets of Santa Cruz de Tenerife are set to lodge a complaint today with the Island Council and the Ministry of Health of the Canary Islands Government over the substandard hygiene and food quality provided by the catering service hired to supply food to police officers at the booths set up along the city’s main streets.
According to the affected police officers, “upon commencing our duty shifts, the food had already been laid out in the booths, and it did not maintain the necessary cold chain for items such as tortillas, mayonnaise, custard, or yogurt, resulting in stomach issues such as diarrhea and nausea for many officers.”
The complainants further stated that they were unable to ascertain the source of the food until last Saturday night, when they finally discovered a van at Piñata, which did not meet proper refrigeration standards, transporting the food in conventional glass-enclosed cabinetry typically used for carriages. This prompted the local police officers to confiscate the food meant for them.
Upon inspecting the cardboard boxes transported by the police catering, officers discovered several dead cockroaches inside, leading to a report being filed for the joint complaint against the company. The report will be submitted to the City Council to highlight the use of unsuitable transportation. Additionally, a detailed report with accompanying photos will be provided to the Ministry of Health for an investigation into Sunshine Catering, the contractor responsible for providing the police service for the Carnival and also catering for various public schools.
The union organization CSIF in the Local Police emphasized that “this issue could have been avoided if the administration had been willing to negotiate with the unions on catering conditions prior to the commencement of the street Carnival, as each year the officers are uncertain about the food’s suitability and appropriateness for the hours of service.”
The union further noted that “discussions on police working conditions during Carnival were declined, with the justification that the officers’ 12-hour break shifts had already been negotiated.”
