Leeds fish & chip shop owner left battered by food hygiene fine

Something fishy is going on with Adnan Malik, the owner of Beeston Fisheries on Dewsbury Road.

Last week Mr Malik failed to appear in court for a hearing about a string of food safety offences. He was fined £1,800 and ordered to pay costs of £3,355.

The food safety offences were discovered during a routine check by the council’s environmental health officers nearly two years ago, on 12 August 2013.

The officers, who inspected the shop, were concerned that Mr Malik’s premises were not well maintained and appeared to be in poor condition.

Equipment and fittings throughout the chip shop were found in a similarly poor condition, while food wasn’t safely stored or protected from contamination.

Furthermore, a suitable food safety management system hadn’t been installed, and Mr Malik also hadn’t established any procedures to deal with pests.

Officers revisited the chip shop on 27 August 2013 to check action had been taken but found limited improvements and even found fresh rat droppings in various parts of the shop.

The takeaway was temporarily closed while the pest control measures were completed and the standards required for re-opening were met.

With numerous offences, the council decided to prosecute and after failing to turn up for several court appearances to answer for his unhygienic crimes, magistrates found Malik guilty in his absence last week.

Councillor Mark Dobson, executive member for cleaner, stronger and safer communities, said: “There is simply no excuse for allowing a kitchen or food to be left in this state, putting customers at risk.

“We rely on reputable business owners maintaining clean premises to keep us safe and we’re grateful that environmental health officers are there to support businesses and help them achieve high standards or take action when they are found lacking.”

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