Yle finds food safety shortcomings at Finnish restaurant chains
Thursday 8th October 2026 on 16:15 in
Finland
A Yle review of more than 16,000 food safety inspections found that as many as one in three checks at some restaurant chains resulted in a notice requiring corrective action.
The review covers restaurants, fast-food outlets and grills inspected between January 2, 2024, and July 31, 2026. The findings included shortcomings in hygiene, temperature monitoring and the condition of premises. No restaurant in the chains examined received the lowest inspection rating.
Yle asked five chains with the most correction notices in its data to explain the problems. The review focused on businesses with at least 10 outlets and excluded chains operating mainly through franchises, where several different companies run the restaurants.
Pancho Villa operator says a new cold room is on order
Inspectors found issues at five of the 14 Pancho Villa restaurants run by Back in Business Oy. Twelve of the restaurants were inspected during the review period. Seven of 22 inspections resulted in a rating requiring corrective action, or about one third.
Chief executive Mirko Lännenpää said deficiencies should not be found, and described the Oiva inspection system as a useful tool for addressing problems. The system is used in food safety inspections.
The Pancho Villa on Hämeenkatu in Tampere received a rating requiring corrective action in August 2026, including over the condition of its premises. Lännenpää said the restaurant needed a replacement cold room, which had been ordered and was expected to arrive in about two months. The existing room was still working, he said.
Finland has 58 Pancho Villa restaurants, run by several franchise operators. The Hämeenkatu restaurant was the only one in the chain with issues requiring correction at the time of the article.
Lapin Asemat points to the age of its premises
Lapin Asemat, which operates 11 service-station restaurants in Lapland and northern Finland, received a rating requiring corrective action in four of 15 inspections, nearly 27 per cent.
Chief executive Markus Nordberg said the notices were likely linked to the age of the premises the company rents. Inspectors had noted surfaces needing repair, including old floors and doors. Nordberg said damaged wooden surfaces, such as door frames in kitchens, could be marked as unhygienic.
About the review
The review covers Oiva inspections from January 2, 2024, to July 31, 2026, at restaurants whose latest inspection took place in 2025 or 2026. Inspections carried out after July 31 were not included, and some problems may have been fixed since the review period.