Nov 20th, 2020
3 mins
A meat cutting plant and cold store in Bristol has been prosecuted for six breaches of hygiene regulations which took place in 2019.
At a hearing on 2nd November 2020, Elite Poultry Ltd were found guilty of failing to apply ID marks, breaching temperature requirements, and re-using cardboard boxes for the storage of meat. Consequently, Bristol Magistrates’ Court ordered the business to pay a £53,000 fine, plus costs of £9,425 and a £181 victim surcharge.
During an unannounced visit on 24th April 2019, officials from the FSA had found poultry meat in bags which were due to be transported from the plant without ID marks, some of which was in reused cardboard boxes. A separate visit on 3rd October 2019 also revealed meat in the cutting plant above the legal minimum temperature.
The company had received previous warnings in January 2019 for failing to apply health marks and re-using carboard boxes as well as a further warning in August 2019 for temperature breaches. The business was served Remedial Action Notices, which required the business to take immediate action to comply with regulations, as a further warning.
Simon Tunnicliffe, FSA Head of Field Operations, said:
“We take all breaches of hygiene regulations seriously. We always aim to work with a business to help them resolve issues first where possible. However, where a business fails to uphold acceptable food hygiene standards, we will take action and look to prosecute to protect public health.”
