COMPLAINTS relating to food hygiene, standards and infectious diseases have risen in Monmouthshire.

During 2011-12, the county's Environmental Health Commercial team received a 69 per cent increase of notifications relating to food poisioning and outbreaks, a report says.

The Food Service Safety Plan, which sets out how the local authority will deliver its future food safety and food standards services, revealed 150 cases of campylobacter, 18 of salmonella, 11 of cryptosporidium, five E-Coli and 17 others were investigated over the past year.

Complaints relating to food hygiene and standards were also up- by 43 per cent on the previous year.

In April 2012, Monmouthshire had 1,367 food establishments on the database, an annual figure which has increased by 6.7 pert cent.

Like all councils in Wales, Monmouthshire has statutory responsibilities to enforce relevant food law in its area.

The report says total revenue expenditure on food safety and standards in the county is estimated at £363,000.

In 2010, Monmouthshire was one of the first Welsh authorities to launch the National Food Hygiene Rating Scheme which has now been adopted Wales-wide.

Other figures in the report show two premises were successfully prosecuted for food hygiene and food standards offences in 2011-12 and115 food outlets were revisited by the Environmental Health team.

It says the service aim is to ensure all food and drink intended for human consumption is of "genuine quality" and does not risk the health and safety of consumers in Monmouthshire.

It added that extra food poisioning notfications received during the summer could be down to an increased influx of tourists- around two million head to Monmouthshire per year in holiday periods.