Owner of cockroach infested takeaway in Baguley handed a suspended prison sentence
An environmental health officer called Love Krispy Takeaway on Royal Oak Road one of the worst cases they dealt with in their 30 year career.
A takeaway owner has been issued with a suspended prison sentence after a major cockroach infestation was found in a takeaway in Baguley, Manchester.
Rizwan Baig, owner of Love Krispy Takeaway on Royal Oak Road, pleaded guilty to seven offences under The Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 in what an environmental health officer described as one of worst cases they have ever dealt with in their 30 year career.
On January 31 2020 at Manchester Crown Court, Recorder Atherton sentenced Mr. Baig to two months imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and also ordered to pay full costs of £3,126.12.
On August 1 2018, officers from the City Council's Environmental Health team visited the property, following an anonymous complaint, and carried out a food safety inspection. The inspection revealed an extensive cockroach infestation throughout the premises.
There was also evidence of serious cross contamination issues with ready to eat foods at risk of contamination from raw chicken and a container of mayonnaise stored in a pool of raw chicken juices.
Officers found live cockroaches crawling on the serving counter, around the pizza delivery bags, on the floor around cans of drinks and on cooking equipment, such as the pizza oven. There were numerous dead cockroaches littering the floor all through the food storage rooms.
The environmental health officer advised the court that it was one of the worst infestations she had seen in her 30 years’ experience of inspecting food businesses. The pest treatment that subsequently took place resulted in vast amounts of dead cockroaches.
Other serious food safety concerns were found including dirty equipment, such as the ice cream machine, the deep fat fryer and the fridges.
The owner agreed to voluntarily close the business until such time as the infestation was under control and the cleaning standards and food safety practices were improved. The takeaway was allowed to reopen on 3 September 2018, subject to the owner maintaining regular pest treatments and good cleaning standards and food safety practices.
Manchester City Council Executive Member for Neighbourhoods, Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar, said: “The City Council takes food safety extremely seriously and will not hesitate to take robust action against food businesses which put the public at risk.
“We hope this case sends out a strong message to other businesses about the importance of maintaining high standards of food safety at all times.
“I would encourage anyone concerned about the hygiene of any food establishment to get in contact with the council so we can ensure standards are adhered to in order to protect public health”