Worldwide Foods (Old Trafford) Ltd pleaded guilty to two offences around food safety management and health and safety. The company was sentenced to a fine of over £30,000, which must be paid within the next calendar year.
The defendants pleaded guilty to a breach of the Food Safety and Hygiene, (England) Regulations 2013, as well as a breach of the Health and Safety at Work Act, regarding failure to make any suitable and sufficient risk assessments relating to their premises on Tennis Street.
The Court found that Worldwide Foods had high culpability for both offences, and commented that bosses had failed to make changes when told to do so, and repeatedly ignored concerns of the regulators on multiple visits by Environmental Health Officers at Trafford Council.
Trafford Council Environmental Health Officers got involved following an accident at Worldwide Foods which saw an employee cut his finger on a bandsaw while chopping meat in the large butchers area of the supermarket. Upon investigation, the council found that suitable and sufficient risk assessments were not in place to cover risks employees were exposed to in the workplace, including the bandsaw and also relating to falls from height in the premises and a lack of suitable and sufficient risk assessments across the range of activities operated by the company at that premises.
In addition, officers found that temperature controls were not being met, with a delivery of sandwiches left at room temperature for several hours and delivered above the required storage temperature. High Risk foods were left on sale on the shelf well above the legal limit for those foods, in contravention of the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013.
