Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court heard how the manufacturer, which supplied sandwiches to supermarkets and corner shops across the country, had broken several hygiene rules and had continued to produce food after being told by authorities to stop.
On 7 May 2024, the UK Heath Security Agency made the Ealing council aware that listeria monocytogenes had been detected in two Bread Spread Ltd-produced sandwiches. This bacteria was also present in a swab taken from a tomato slicer, even after it had been cleaned and disinfected.
Council officers visited the factory the next day where they deemed the production of Bread Spread Ltd’s ready-to-eat foods as an imminent risk of injury to health. The company was served a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice to immediately stop production of all ready-to-eat foods.
Continued to break rules
Despite this, a further unannounced visit later in May found the business still producing foods under poor hygiene conditions.
On 11 May, the Food Standards Agency issued a country-wide recall of all sandwiches and salads produced by Bread Spread Ltd under its brand names Bread Spread, Orbital Foods, and Perfect Bite. The supplier’s poor traceability records caused delays in quickly removing potentially unsafe food from the market.
Bread Spread Ltd, of Balfour Business Centre in Southall, and its director Premalkumar Patel pleaded guilty to 21 counts of serious food hygiene failures at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on 4 March.
Patel and the company were each fined £14,000, with both also ordered to pay a £2,000 victim surcharge. The company was ordered to pay £13,835 in prosecution costs. In total, the company and its director and manager will pay a total of £46,827.
Pleaded guilty
Manager Ronak Patel also pleaded guilty to two charges and received a fine of £673 for one charge in totality. He was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £269, bringing his total to £942.
Commenting on the fine, councillor Kamaljit Nagpal – Ealing Council’s cabinet member for decent living incomes – said: “Thanks to swift and coordinated action by council officers and our partners at national agencies, this business has been held accountable for the filthy conditions in its factory.
“We will always take the strongest possible action against companies which choose to ignore basic safety rules and put their customers at risk.”
Meanwhile, the owner of a grocery store has been ordered to pay almost £30,000 after council inspectors discovered a rat infestation in his shop.
