Mandatory health inspection placards now on display at entrance to restaurants across the City of Detroit

DETROIT (WWJ) -- Starting today, people dining in the City of Detroit may notice a green or red placard on display.

What's this all about?

In June of this year, the Detroit City Council Passed the Dining with Confidence Ordinance (chapter 19-2.52-54), which requires businesses to post color-coded grades from their most recent health department inspections to let customers know what type of place they’re walking into.

The City of Detroit said the goals of the program are to increase visibility and transparency regarding Food Safety Inspections, provide an additional incentive for restaurants to achieve lasting improvement in food safety, and educate the public on food safety inspections by the Detroit Health Department.

Each business will have green “In Compliance” placard, or red “Enforcement” placard, placed at the entrance to the restaurant. The card will include a QR code that customers can scan to get more information about any violations.

The program is mandatory, and as Oct. 1, 2024, all 2,000 of Detroit's eateries are required by law to display their placard.

"It lets people know that they can dine with confidence throughout the City of Detroit, and when people come into the city that they can be confident that where they're dining is serving food safely," said Detroit Councilman Scott Benson, who spearheaded the legislation.

(All information below is provided by the City of Detroit.)

In Compliance means:

• There are either no serious violations (Priority or Priority foundation - P/Pf) or they have all been corrected
• Less than 5 total P/Pf violations were cited
• The establishment is not in enforcement
• The inspector has not required a follow-up inspection due to an overall low level of sanitation
• The establishment has a valid food service license
Where can you see the violations that were cited during inspections: Search Restaurant Inspection

There are three types of placards:

Green Placard : a green placard will be placed in participating restaurants with the Detroit Health Department's logo on it, the words “In Compliance,” and a QR code and link for more information.

Red Placard : Issued if a restaurant has to be ordered to close due to severe health hazard, due to not having a valid food service license, or as a final step in progressive enforcement of violations.

White Placard : For restaurants that have not yet been inspected or that do not yet qualify for the Green Placard, a sign providing information about the program and a link to a website where users will be able to search for restaurant inspections and violations.

The publics can get more information on violations that were cited during inspections at this link .