Food Safety

Butcher fined £6,500 for failing to clean up his act 16/06/2010 A butcher who had a history of poor compliance and failed to improve food safety standards despite help from food safety officers has been fined £5,500.

The butcher pleaded guilty to three food hygiene offences and one food labelling offence at Northampton magistrates court. The court heard South Northamptonshire Borough Council food safety officers found evidence of breaches during routine inspections on 28 January and 17 August 2009.

When they visited the premises in January 2010, they found dirty conditions and evidence of poor practices, including the risk of contamination between raw and ready-to-eat foods. On 17 August, they found a joint of 'smoked collar' in a walk-in chiller with a use-by date of 10 August.

The butcher was found guilty of offences relating to poor standards of cleanliness, failure to implement systems to protect food safety and the sale of food past its use-by date. He was ordered to pay £1,000 in costs plus a £15 victim surcharge.

An environmental health manager, said:

"‘Despite support and advice from the health protection team the proprietor has failed to improve standards and there was no option other than a prosecution."

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