Restaurant fined £7,000 for hygiene breaches

Pedro's Indian Cuisine in Kingswinford, West Midlands has been ordered to pay in excess of £7,000 in fines and costs after environmental health officers found multiple hygiene problems during an inspection in August last year.

In the kitchen, officers reported mouldy walks and floors, dirty food storage containers and rotting products in the fridge. A dead rat was found at the side of the restaurant and rat droppings in the kitchen under the sink.

Staff were not trained in food hygiene and there was not a food safety management system in place.

The restaurant received a hygiene rating of zero out of five.

Owners of Pedro's pleaded guilty to eight offences at Dudley Magistrates Court on 1 September and were ordered to pay a fine of £5,000 plus costs of £2,216 and £120 victim surcharge.

Councillor Rachel Harris, cabinet member responsible for health and wellbeing, said: "We much prefer to work with businesses to secure compliance with the law, but we will not hesitate to take legal action against the minority of food business proprietors who do not take our advice on board and who fail to meet their legal responsibilities.

"Nearly half of all food outlets in the borough are achieving the top hygiene rating of five and the vast majority achieve a satisfactory rating of three or more. I would urge consumers to check out hygiene ratings online as these will give consumers a glimpse of what is going on in the kitchen when they eat out, or behind the scenes at the places they shop."

The business has since been revaluated and received a hygiene rating of three out of five.

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