SIXTY seven takeaways, restaurants and canteens have been warned to take food hygiene more seriously after receiving bottom marks in a new scheme.

Fast food outlets and eateries across Blackburn and Darwen have been named and shamed after the council launched a new Scores on the Doors food safety scheme.

Kitchens have been thrown open to environmental health inspectors who measured premises in three areas - food hygiene, structural safety and their confidence in whether management can turn things around.

Then every establishment is given an overall mark, from no stars, signifying bad performance in all three areas, to five stars, and this is published on a Scores on the Doors website.

Cafes and restaurants in the borough rate poorly when compared to other north west areas, it has emerged.

So far thecouncil is the only Lancashire authority to take part in the scheme.

But 11 other north west councils have posted their figures on the Scores on the Doors website, including nearby Calderdale, South Lakeland and Warrington.

Blackburn with Darwen has nearly ten per cent of inspected premises with a no-star rating - Calderdale and South Lakeland have just 3.4 and 4.3 per cent respectively. Warrington has just 0.06 per cent.

Similarly Blackburn with Darwen has 1.6 per cent of premises with five stars - the other three have up to 17.5 per cent with top marks.

Only 12 locations in Blackburn and Darwen have notched up five stars as a result of the inspections.

Chris Allen, the council's head of environmental health, said: "The Scores on the Doors is designed to drive forward improvements in food hygiene across the board.

"This is the first time that such information has been made publicly available on such as wide scale.

"Hopefully businesses can compare themselves to rivals and they will use this to drive their own improvements and improve their own low rating before the next time that they are inspected."

He said clear advice on how improvements could be made was on the scheme's website - www.scoresonthedoors.org.uk - which is also available to all would-be customers to check out their favourite eateries.

But pub landlord Alan Harle, of the Punch Hotel, Darwen, blamed a lack of publicity for his no-star rating.

He said: "If we had known about these things then we would have been complying.

"They brought in this new system without telling anyone.

"Maybe the bigger restaurants knew all about it but we only sell sandwiches, the odd burger, maybe a pie heated up the microwave."

He said he was confident the pub was now conforming to food hygiene regulations.

Other hostelries to receive no-star ratings include the Chetharm Arms, Turton, Ranken Arms, Hoddlesden and Tockholes' Royal Arms.

The food outlets with no stars

SO far 872 premises have been inspected by environmental health officers as part of the Scores on the Doors scheme.

Only 12 have been rated as "excellent", 167 are "very good", 149 are "good", 276 are "fair", another 47 are "poor" and 67 are ranked as "bad".

Another 158 sites only serve food as a minor sideline and do not qualify for inspection.

Those receiving no stars were: Blackburn Buffet City, Exchange Street; Flames, New Bank Road; The Chippery, Johnston Street; Chesters Chicken and Pizza, Copy Nook; Marhaba Sweet Centre, Victoria Street; Hot and Tender, Accrington Road; Trishna Indian Takeaway, Bolton Road; Godfather, Blakey Moor; Sweet Palace, Audley Range; Oasis Fast Food, Borough Road; Tasty Corner Tandoori, Whalley New Road; Fareed Takeaway, Audley Range; Chili Corner Grill, Whalley Banks; Eastern Delight, Mincing Lane; Godfather Pizza House, Duckworth Street; Mellors Catering @Microtech Solutions, Philips Road; Muffins, Town Hall Street; Simi's Takeaway, Whalley Old Road; Lynwood Takeaway, Blackburn Road; Punch Hotel, Chapels; Chetham Arms, High Street, Turton; Ranken Arms, Hoddlesden; Royal Arms, Tockholes Road; Azeems Restaurant, St Peter Street, Haweli Restaurant, Higher Eanam; Waterlily Inn, Eccleshill; Cookin Crew, Blackburn Road; Barm Pots, New Chapel Street; Carol's Butty Box, Blackburn Road; Butz Sandwich Bar, Whalley New Road; Tasty Spot, Darwen Street; Bilash Balti, Blackburn Road; Oasis Fast Food Northwest, Darwen Street; May Flower, Markham Road; New Moon Chinese Takeaway, New Chapel Street; Davidsons, Blackburn Road; D and Leavers Bakers, Bolton Road; D Whitehead, Blackburn Road; Alexander's, Blackburn Road; Spar, Rothesay Road; Mohammed & Sons, Pringle Street; Firdos Cash & Carry, Altom Street; Almadina Halal Meat & Grocers, Whalley Street; Pepenico, Watford Street; Anwar Halal Meat, London Road, Corner Shop, Warrington Street; Yau Hing Chinese, Blackburn Road; China Wok, Bolton Road; Cherry Tree Chippy, Preston Old Road; Mill Hill Curry Centre, New Welllington Street; Zand's, New Chapel Street, Naafiah, Audley Range, Khans Spice Takeaway, Johnston Street, Shandar Tandoori, Victoria Street, Imran Tandoori, Wensley Road, Goodfellas Part 2, Randal Street; Kebabish Original, Whalley New Road; Eastern Spice, Whalley Banks; Masala Mix, Accrington Road; New Star, Blackburn Road; Zen Zen, Redlam; Wok King Express, Whalley New Road, Local News and Mini Mart, Whalley New Road.