A £10,000 BLITZ on poor food hygiene is taking place across Teesside and Darlington.
All five Tees Valley councils: Darlington, Stockton, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool and Redcar and Cleveland; have been given a grant by the Food Standards Agency to combat poor hygiene.
The cash will be paid out over the next two years to help get the message across to residents.
A hard-hitting television advertisement featuring the perils of barbecued food and cross-contamination during hand-washing will spearhead the authorities' campaign.
The advertisement will build on radio commercials carried throughout the North-East last year and will complement a leaflet delivery to food outlets in the Tees Valley.
Rob Llewellyn, Stockton Borough Council's principal environmental health officer, said: "We are continually pressing home the message about the importance of food hygiene across the board from restaurants to schools, and this money will help us spread that message across Tees Valley.
"The television commercial gets the message home in an informative way yet it does carry a humorous edge".
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