Environmental and Consumer Health

Food Safety

Retail Food Establishments

The Health Department conducts annual routine inspections of all retail food establishments to ensure that State standards are met.  These inspections are conducted by Ewing's trained and licensed New Jersey Registered Environmental Health Specialists. Inspectors also work to educate retail food workers on best practices for safe food handling and take action as needed to enforce the code when necessary.  The Health Department also responds to individual complaints as well as the monitoring of all recalled foods to ensure that only safe products reach the public.

Regulated establishments include, but are not limited to:

Bakeries  |  Catering Facilities  |  Delis  |  Schools  |  Restaurants  |  Supermarkets  | Temporary Events  |  Mobile Units  | Vending Machines

• Application for a Retail Food License
• Retail Establishment Plan Review Application
• Retail Food Establishment Plan Review Guide
• Temporary Mobile Event License Application
• Food Vendor Requirements for Temporary Events

Cottage Food Permits

A Cottage Food Operator’s Permit allows you to sell certain homemade foods that don’t need time or temperature control to stay safe, directly to customers from your home kitchen.

• Approved foods
• Review requirements (Local Zoning Board approval, food protection manager's certificate, proof of safe water)
• Apply for permit (pay fee)

Food Vending Machines

It is unlawful for any person or anybody corporate to furnish, install, service, operate or maintain one or more vending machines, as defined and governed by Chapter 24 of the NJ State Sanitary code, without first having procured a license from the Township of Ewing.  The licensing year for vending machines runs June 1st – May 31st with application and applicable fee due by May 31st of each year. Submit a separate application for each additional location. See §172-26.

• Vending Machine Application

Foodborne Illnesses

Foodborne illnesses are illnesses that come from eating contaminated food. Foodborne illnesses are preventable through the practice of food safety.  They are caused by a variety of bacteria, viruses, and parasites and can be caused by consuming improperly prepared food items, poor hygiene among food handlers, or contamination in food processing facilities or farms. Many food-borne pathogens also can be acquired through recreational or drinking water, from contact with animals or their environment, or through person-to-person spread.

Severity

Symptoms range from short, mild illnesses, often mistakenly referred to as "food poisoning", to life-threatening disease.  For more information about foodborne disease outbreaks please go to Department of Health | Communicable Disease Service | Food-borne Illness.

Public Bathing Places

Seasonal and year-round facilities such as pools and hot tubs are routinely inspected. Weekly lab analyses of all public bathing places are required and reviewed for bacteria and chemical levels to assure safety of bathing waters.

• Permit to Operate a Recreational Bathing Facility

Wells and Well Water Testing

If you are one of the many residents who get their water from a private well, the Ewing Township Health Department would like to remind you that it is your responsibility to ensure the quality of your well water by having it routinely tested by a Certified NJ Water Testing Laboratory.  The Private Well Testing Act (PWTA) requires sellers (or buys) of property to test the untreated groundwater for up to 43 parameters.  Those test results must be reviewed by both parties prior to the closing of the title.  Landlords are also required to test their well water once every five years and to provide each tenant with a copy of the test results.  These results are also submitted to the NJDEP, which in turn, sends the results to the local health authorities.

Testing of your well water is important for your family’s health. If testing is not done, you and your family may be subject to potential health risks and not know it. You may also be subject to enforcement action.

Legal Requirements

• Ewing Township Lead-Based Paint Hazard Inspections Ordinance Ord. No. 22-26
• Dept of Community Affairs Lead-Based Paint Inspections Requirement for Rental Dwelling Units
• NJ Lead-Based Paint Inspection Law (P.L. 2021, c. 182)

Lead Evaluation Contractors

• List of certified contractors from the DCA

Lead Abatement Contractors

You must use a certified (DCA) Lead Abatement Contractor if you decide to conduct lead abatement in your home. Building permits must also be filed thru the Construction Office.

• List of Abatement Contractors from the DCA 

Lead in Soil from Historic Pottery Sites in Trenton New Jersey Department of Health’s (NJDOH)

Information and Guidance for Residents

• Trenton Pottery Sites Info (Spanish)
• Trenton Pottery Sites Info (Haitian Creole)

Exposure to high levels of lead can damage the nervous systems of children, causing problems that range from hearing loss and seizures to unconsciousness and death. More recent research has demonstrated a link between even relatively low levels of exposure and a variety of subtle cognitive problems including learning disabilities and decreased intelligence.

Children are more sensitive to the harmful effects of lead than adults, because more of the lead they swallow gets into their bloodstream. Children also are at greater risk because they often play on the floor or ground, where lead-contaminated dust or soil is found. And they are much more likely than adults to put this material in their mouths.

Considerable efforts have been made to reduce children's exposure: Lead-based house paints have been banned since 1978, toy makers can no longer use lead-containing paints and the use of lead additives in gasoline has decreased.

In spite of these measures, it's estimated that nearly 250,000 American children under the age of 5 have abnormally high levels of lead in their blood.

Childhood lead poisoning can occur from a variety of sources including:

• Lead paint in homes built before 1978
• Water, through lead pipes
• Soil
• Imported goods such as spices, canned goods, toys, jewelry or pottery
• Occupational exposure, such as dust on clothing from the workplace.

Identify and eliminate any lead-based paint in your home

Many older homes-especially those built prior to 1978 still contain paint with high lead levels. Lead-based paint that is peeling or chipping is especially dangerous because young children may eat it. If you believe lead paint may be a problem, have your home inspected.

The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) has instituted P.L. 2021, c.182 (adopted as N.J.A.C. 5:28A), which requires that municipalities perform inspections of certain single-family, two-family, and multiple-rental dwellings for lead-based paint hazards. 

If you discover lead-based paint in your home, the best solution is to hire a certified abatement company to remove it. Never attempt to get rid of leaded paint yourself by scraping or sanding it; this creates large amounts of lead dust and can actually increase your risk of toxic exposure. If you're unable to afford professional abatement or it's impractical, a good alternative is to cover the painted surface with a durable, tough material like drywall or paneling. Simply painting or wallpapering over lead paint usually doesn't provide sufficient protection.

Leaded Pipes

Lead can leach from older pipes into the water that your family drinks and cooks with. As many families in town receive their water from Trenton Water Works they have been identified by the utility and contacted to investigate the need for replacement of their service lines. By State law, TWW must replace all lead and galvanized service lines by 2031. To learn more, go to TWW Lead Service Line Replacement Program. Use the Check Your Line tool to determine whether you have a lead service line.  Follow their directions for submitting a survey with your information.  Questions?  Call 609-989-3600.  

Additional Sources of Lead Exposure

Other sources of Lead exposure include contaminated soil, jobs and hobbies, imports, and even herbal remedies. To learn more about the dangers originating from these sources go to the Childhood Lead webpage from the NJ DOH.

The Health Department can be consulted for guidance on lead abatement procedures and contractors, radon testing and asbestos concerns. Reports of excessive levels of lead in children are reported to the Health Department by health practitioners. The Health Department provides case management and investigation of the sources of this poisoning.