MSC POESIA RECEIVED THE TOP SCORE OF 100 POINTS BY THE US PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE (USPHS)

The U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) praised MSC Poesia for receiving the highest score of 100 in a rigorous examination carried out during a recent unannounced inspection on March 20^th.

After a 7-8 hour inspection, USPHS officers informed the MSC Poesia’s management that she was, together with MSC Lirica, the cleanest ship they had inspected and complimented the crew on their general understanding and use of controls to avoid illness and contamination.

The score of 100 points achieved by MSC Poesia this week-end completes the impressive scores awarded to MSC Cruise’s ships over the past ten years. The company’s reputation as a top scorer is one of the highest in the cruise industry with MSC Lirica achieving three successive 100 points during her last seasons in the USA in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

The inspection team of the Vessel Sanitation Program of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), operating under the authority of the Public Health Service Act said the 100-point score was awarded because of the outstanding state of sanitation, safe food handling, and the general high level of understanding and compliance in the areas of food, water, air and general hygiene onboard MSC Poesia.

The CDC officers conducted intense inspections of the food provisioning, storage and preparation areas, the ship’s laundry, bars, self-serve buffets, restaurants, washing machinery, room service operations, medical and children’s centres, as well as its Integrated Pest Management Program, waste management, housekeeping and public area cleanliness, recreational and portable water protection and supply system, air purity controls, and the ship’s general procedures to prevent or control illnesses such as Norovirus.

“Our guests often tell us that we have the best entertainment and the cleanest ships afloat,” says Richard E. Sasso, president and CEO of MSC Cruises (USA). “We are extremely proud of our consistently top-rated scores from the USPHS inspectors as they are the results of MSC team efforts to make guests experiences the very best.”

MSC Poesia’s inspection results will be published on the VSP website (www.cdc.gov).

Information on the US Public Health Service Department’s Vessel Sanitation Program

The US Public Health Service is composed of an elite team of more than 6’000 highly qualified public health professionals dedicated to delivering the Nation’s public health promotion and disease prevention programmes and advancing public health science.

The US Public Health Department’s Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP), acting under the authority of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), aims to assist the cruise ship industry to prevent and control the introduction, transmission and spread of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships. Any ship in US waters carrying more than 13 passengers is subject to two random inspections per year. Final scores and results are then published on the VSP website and represent one of the deciding factors in the passengers’ choice of a cruise ship.

MSC Cruises currently has the most modern fleet in the world, comprising of eleven ships: MSC Splendida and MSC Fantasia (the largest ships ever built for a European ship owner), MSC Poesia, MSC Orchestra, MSC Musica, MSC Sinfonia, MSC Armonia, MSC Opera, MSC Lirica and MSC Melody. MSC Magnifica the latest addition was launched in March 2010. The fleet cruises year round in the Mediterranean and seasonally in Northern Europe, the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean, North America and Canada, South America, the Indian Ocean, South and West Africa. MSC Cruises is the only company in the world to receive the “6 Golden Pearls” award from the Bureau Veritas in recognition of its high level of quality management and environmental protection. The organization has also earned ISO 9001 and ISO 22000 certification for the quality and food safety of all aspects of its catering, both onshore and onboard. MSC Cruises cares about the welfare of children, and as a responsible market leader, it believes in making a positive impact in the regions where it operates. To this end, the company has forged a  partnership with UNICEF to fund a community project aimed at providing disadvantaged children in Brazil with a high quality education.