A health inspector from Merton has been chosen as part of an elite squad tackling food safety in the run up to the Olympics.

Andrew Bradley, an environmental health officer, was chosen by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) to be part of the team, which will carry out extra hygiene inspections and ensure all food sold, cooked and eaten during the games is safe.

The Food Safety Squad, comprising 10 members, is representing the many hundreds of environmental health officers across the UK.

Mr Bradley said: "London hosting the main Olympic events during the games is an opportunity to promote everything that Merton has to offer, particularly our fantastic choice of places to eat out.

"At the same time, having to serve more people than normal can create situations that don’t arise under normal circumstances, such as the need to produce and store lots of food in advance.

"I’m proud to be part of the Food Safety Squad and am looking forward to working with colleagues from around the country to provide the support these businesses need and to helping keep visitors to the games safe."

Working in towns and cities hosting Olympic or Paralympic events, the squad will be giving the inside track on their inspections and showcasing the vital work they are doing to keep visitors to the Games safe.

The initiative is part of the FSA’s Play It Safe campaign, raising awareness of food safety among food businesses and visitors to London 2012.

Sarah Appleby, head of enforcement and local authority delivery at the Food Standards Agency, added: "London 2012 is about celebrating everything that the UK has to offer and food is an important part of this.

"We have so much fantastic food to showcase to Games visitors, and we want food business owners to ensure that everything they sell is the best it can be.

"It will be an exceptionally busy time for a lot of these businesses, and the FSA is providing extra support and advice to make sure they are well prepared to meet the challenge."

More information for food businesses and the general public will be available during the coming months on www.food.gov.uk/olympics and through a dedicated Twitter feed which will be launched in the coming weeks, @playitsafefood.