See inside the high street shop fined £40,000 after rat infestation
A convenience store which had a severe rat infestation has been fined more than £40,000 for hygiene offences.
First Stop Limited in Broad Street, Welshpool, appeared at Llandrindod Wells Magistrates Court this week in a prosecution led by Powys County Council's environmental health team.
Councillor Jonathan Wilkinson, the council's Cabinet Member for Environmental Health, has urged the public to check Food Hygiene Ratings before choosing where to eat out or buy food after representatives from First Stop pleaded guilty to 10 hygiene offences and asked for three more to be taken into consideration.
The court heard how an environmental health officer from the council visited the premises in November 2016 having received a complaint from a customer who said they'd seen rats in the shop area.
The officer found evidence of a severe rat infestation and said there was gnawed food and food packaging on the shelves, which staff had been aware of. Rat droppings were also found throughout the shop and there were points where the rodents had chewed through the walls and floor.
Because of the imminent risk to health caused by the rat infestation, the officer served First Stop with a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice and was told to remain closed until the rats has been eliminated.
Magistrates also heard that the company failed to comply with a Hygiene Improvement Notice served in regard to a dirty and moudly refrigerator.
As a result of the inspection, the premises was awarded the lowest Food Hygiene Rating of zero. The court then heard that the company failed to display their rating sticker correctly.
In a further visit to the premises in May 2017, the inspecting officer found that the display refrigerators containing high-risk food items were not operating at the correct temperature. High-risk foods like cooked meats, cheeses and pies were found being stored at between 11°C and 15°C rather than at or below the legal limit of 8°C.
Six packs of cooked meat were also found being displayed for sale past their use-by date.
Councillor Wilkinson said: "Food businesses that sell food to the public have a responsibility to ensure that their premises comply with food hygiene regulations and do not put the health of the public at risk.
"In this instance, First Stop (Welshpool) Limited fell far short of the standards expected of them, to a point where officers had to take immediate action to prevent a risk of injury to health. The presence of rats in a food premises is unacceptable, these rodents carry harmful diseases that can be past to humans through food.
"All food business operators in the county should take note of the penalties they may face when they do not comply with food hygiene regulations."
Magistrates fined First Stop £40,000 for the 13 offences and ordered them to pay £3,000 prosecution costs and a mandatory surcharge of £170.
First Stop did not want to comment.
Anyone with concerns about a food business should contact the environmental health service on 01597 827467.
