Owner of Lancaster food business fined for food hygiene offences

Monday, 25 September 2023 16:08

A Lancaster food business owner has been ordered to pay more than £14,000 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to breaches in food hygiene regulations.

Fuzail Mohammed Patel, director of Eat Indian 2 Ltd, trading as Eat Indian kitchen, Unit 1, Lansil Industrial Estate, Lancaster, pleaded guilty to 12 offences under The Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 at Lancaster Magistrates’ Court on February 6 2023.

Following a further hearing of the case for sentencing at Blackpool Magistrates’ Court last week (Wednesday, September 20), Mr Patel, age 30 was fined £7,800 plus victim surcharge of £190 and ordered to pay the council’s full costs of £6,229.65.

Eat Indian 2 Ltd was ordered to pay a fine of £10 plus victim surcharge of £34.

The offences occurred following a number of inspections of the unit on Lansil Industrial Estate by Lancaster City Council’s Environmental Health Team between December 2021 and June 2022.

Magistrates heard that over this period of time, inspections identified poor standards at the premises which supplies products to Eat Indian retail shops in Lancaster, Preston and Kendal.

Issues included poor controls in place for cooling food, storage of waste, cleanliness and maintenance, hand washing, transport of food and non-compliance with statutory notices served to seek improved standards at the premises.

Councillor Joanne Ainscough, cabinet member with responsibility for environmental health and enforcement, said: “Our environmental health team is committed to ensuring food standards remain high in the Lancaster district to safeguard our residents and visitors.

“Poor food hygiene standards can pose a serious threat to public health and we will not hesitate in taking action against businesses who fall short of legal food safety and hygiene requirements.”