Spirit fined after food hygiene prosecution
Spirit Group has been fined a total of £12,000 after environmental health officers found food unfit for human consumption at one of its pubs.
The Bridge Builder in Telford, Shropshire was inspected by EHOs from Telford & Wrekin council in June 2004 after a complaint was made. In a hearing at Telford Magistrates Court, Spirit was found guilty of five offences.
The £12,000 fine was made up of £5,000 for food unfit for human consumption, £2,000 for food beyond its use-by date, £2,000 for failure to identify controls to hazards, £1,500 for poor standards of cleaning, and £1,500 for poor structure.
Along with the fine, the UK's biggest managed pub group was also ordered to pay the council's costs of £3,117.08.
After the case, a Spirit spokeswoman said: "The team at the Bridge Builder is committed to delivering high standards and were extremely disappointed by the findings of the EHO. "As soon as the issue was brought to our attention, we closed the kitchen and put stringent processes in place to ensure that we consistently provide the best possible food experience for our customers.
"Over the last 12 months we have also worked closely with the EHOs who are more than satisfied with our step change in standards."
Prosecutions in food hygiene cases are relatively rare. In a survey of more than 750 pubs carried out for The Publican Food Report 2004, published in November last year, only 14 per cent said their last visit from an EHO had led to them being warned or told to change something, and none had been taken to court.
However, Cllr Stephen Bentley, Telford's cabinet member with responsibility for enforcement said the Bridge Builder case should be a "warning" to other businesses.
He pledged: "If high standards are not maintained at food and drink establishments in Telford & Wrekin, the council will act upon any complaint and take cases all the way to court if unfit conditions are discovered."
