Koha Oriental Foods Fined $100,000

The Hawai‘i State Department of Health discovered Koha Oriental Foods’ unpermitted food warehouse in late August 2016 as part of its Hepatitis A outbreak investigation on O‘ahu.

The Hawai‘i State Department of Health  Sanitation Branch has now issued a Notice of Violation and Order to Koha Oriental Foods for operating a food storage warehouse facility without a state permit from November 2015 to August 2016.

The facility, located at 94-150 Leokane St. in Waipahu on O‘ahu had been used to store frozen seafood, among other products, for sale and distribution.

The company is ordered to pay an administrative penalty of $100,000 for the violation and may request a hearing to contest the order.

In August of last yea,  it was determined the warehouse had been operating from October 2015 without a state food establishment permit as required by Hawai‘i Administrative Rules Title 11 Chapter 50-3. After becoming aware of the violation, Koha Oriental Foods immediately applied for and received a legal permit.

After becoming aware of the violation, Koha Oriental Foods immediately applied for and received a legal permit.

Food establishments in Hawai‘i that fail to obtain required state health department permits are subject to fines of up to $1,000 per day for each violation.

“In this case, when determining the monetary penalty amount, we considered the lower risk factors involved in operating a static frozen food storage facility where food is not prepared and directly handled by the employees,” said Peter Oshiro, chief of the DOH Sanitation Branch. “Operating without a permit is a serious matter, and under state rules the company could have been fined nearly $300,000 for conducting business operations at the facility without a permit for almost a year.”

The public may access food establishment health inspection results online.

For more information on the department’s Sanitation Branch go to http://health.hawaii.gov/san.