Teh One Who Knocks
08-02-2013, 10:47 AM
By Martin Robinson - The Daily Mail
http://i.imgur.com/zCkMCdt.jpg
A chef at a mice-infested wedding cake shop told inspectors droppings found in his ingredients were chocolate sprinkles, a court heard.
The filthy basement of Bake & Cake in Edgware Road, central London, was covered in rodent mess alongside discarded food, piles of sawdust and filthy machinery.
When an inspector found icing for cakes 'embedded' with mouse droppings, the chef insisted it was actually chocolate vermicelli used for buns.
The shop’s former manager Hussein Hassan, 43, was today hauled before Westminster Magistrates Court to answer for the squalid conditions.
Inspectors from Westminster Council raided the premises on July 17 last year and immediately discovered a series mouse infestation.
‘She pulled out trays in the cooling rack and found mouse droppings embedded in the circular disk used to add writing to cakes’, said prosecutor Marie-Claire Amuah.
‘When she queried this to the chef, he stated the mouse droppings were chocolate vermicelli used as decoration on cakes and buns.
‘She pulled out a tray of triangles of white chocolate, and found some mouse dropping embedded in the chocolate, meaning the mouse had to walk over it to be there.
‘There were more embedded droppings closer to the edge and under the greaseproof paper.’
http://i.imgur.com/Uz3ShU1.png
A sponge used for food preparation was found covered in mouse dirt and further searches revealed every room of the basement of the bakery had evidence of mice infestation.
Ms Amuah: ‘The area where the pipes ran into the ground was filthy and there were mouse droppings present.
‘A box with icing inside had mouse droppings on the top of the plastic bag used to cover it and metal racking used to store cooling trays had mouse droppings along them.
‘There was also a large amount of chocolate icing debris on the floor of the area.
‘The amount of debris present in the room was far in excess of that from a morning’s work, indicating there was poor cleaning.’
Inspectors also found sawdust next to an electrical junction box, which may have been the nesting area for the mice.
The basement was said to be in a poor general condition, with peeling paint and dirty equipment, as well as mouse droppings in the back of a juice extractor.
They also found fresh excrement just inches from pre-prepared pastry, bags of flour and chocolate icing.
http://i.imgur.com/6PYqXli.jpg
Nine days earlier, managers had been warned to clean up their act but took no notice.
The shop, which has been open for five years, was shut down on the spot after the raid to undergo a £5,000 clean-up.
It was reopened ten days later and regained its level three hygiene rating following a fresh inspection in June this year.
Hassan, the only person who turned up to court today, said he no longer worked fulltime as manager and earned only £150 a week in a new part-time role.
District Judge Elizabeth Roscoe fined him £300 and ordered him to pay prosecution costs of £1,300 after he admitted five health and safety breaches.
But she hit the company much harder after it failed to produce any evidence of turnover and the owner flew off on holiday instead of attending the hearing.
‘This was a serious breach, it was extensive, and it wasn’t just in one place or a small amount’, she said.
‘This really was extensive to the extent that a prohibition notice had to be served.
‘That shows how bad it was.’
Bake and Cake, owned by Bon Croissant Ltd, was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay a £100 victim surcharge and £1,319.50 prosecution costs.
Both the firm and Hassan pleaded guilty to five counts of contravening a provision of the food hygiene regulations.
http://i.imgur.com/zCkMCdt.jpg
A chef at a mice-infested wedding cake shop told inspectors droppings found in his ingredients were chocolate sprinkles, a court heard.
The filthy basement of Bake & Cake in Edgware Road, central London, was covered in rodent mess alongside discarded food, piles of sawdust and filthy machinery.
When an inspector found icing for cakes 'embedded' with mouse droppings, the chef insisted it was actually chocolate vermicelli used for buns.
The shop’s former manager Hussein Hassan, 43, was today hauled before Westminster Magistrates Court to answer for the squalid conditions.
Inspectors from Westminster Council raided the premises on July 17 last year and immediately discovered a series mouse infestation.
‘She pulled out trays in the cooling rack and found mouse droppings embedded in the circular disk used to add writing to cakes’, said prosecutor Marie-Claire Amuah.
‘When she queried this to the chef, he stated the mouse droppings were chocolate vermicelli used as decoration on cakes and buns.
‘She pulled out a tray of triangles of white chocolate, and found some mouse dropping embedded in the chocolate, meaning the mouse had to walk over it to be there.
‘There were more embedded droppings closer to the edge and under the greaseproof paper.’
http://i.imgur.com/Uz3ShU1.png
A sponge used for food preparation was found covered in mouse dirt and further searches revealed every room of the basement of the bakery had evidence of mice infestation.
Ms Amuah: ‘The area where the pipes ran into the ground was filthy and there were mouse droppings present.
‘A box with icing inside had mouse droppings on the top of the plastic bag used to cover it and metal racking used to store cooling trays had mouse droppings along them.
‘There was also a large amount of chocolate icing debris on the floor of the area.
‘The amount of debris present in the room was far in excess of that from a morning’s work, indicating there was poor cleaning.’
Inspectors also found sawdust next to an electrical junction box, which may have been the nesting area for the mice.
The basement was said to be in a poor general condition, with peeling paint and dirty equipment, as well as mouse droppings in the back of a juice extractor.
They also found fresh excrement just inches from pre-prepared pastry, bags of flour and chocolate icing.
http://i.imgur.com/6PYqXli.jpg
Nine days earlier, managers had been warned to clean up their act but took no notice.
The shop, which has been open for five years, was shut down on the spot after the raid to undergo a £5,000 clean-up.
It was reopened ten days later and regained its level three hygiene rating following a fresh inspection in June this year.
Hassan, the only person who turned up to court today, said he no longer worked fulltime as manager and earned only £150 a week in a new part-time role.
District Judge Elizabeth Roscoe fined him £300 and ordered him to pay prosecution costs of £1,300 after he admitted five health and safety breaches.
But she hit the company much harder after it failed to produce any evidence of turnover and the owner flew off on holiday instead of attending the hearing.
‘This was a serious breach, it was extensive, and it wasn’t just in one place or a small amount’, she said.
‘This really was extensive to the extent that a prohibition notice had to be served.
‘That shows how bad it was.’
Bake and Cake, owned by Bon Croissant Ltd, was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay a £100 victim surcharge and £1,319.50 prosecution costs.
Both the firm and Hassan pleaded guilty to five counts of contravening a provision of the food hygiene regulations.