Faye Selway, of Wadebridge-based The Natural Cake Company, pleaded guilty to four food safety and hygiene offences at Bodmin Magistrates’ Court.
The case was brought by Cornwall Council following a complaint from a customer relating to plastic contamination in a wedding cake supplied by Selway in April 2026.
The wedding cake produced by Selway was found to contain pieces of plastic between the different icing layers and may also have contained traces of nuts.
As a result, the cake was not served to guests over fears it could pose a risk to health.
The cake was also delivered in the incorrect colour and had visible imperfections in the icing.
Despite these issues, Selway refused to provide the customer with a refund, despite giving both written and verbal assurances that the cake would be nut-free and made in a completely nut-free environment at her cake studio.
This was crucial as one of the brides has a severe nut allergy and had previously been hospitalised with anaphylaxis.
During the case, the council said that, had the pieces of plastic not prevented the cake from being served, the potential for nut contamination could have had catastrophic consequences.
Given concerns not only about the plastic contamination but also the overall standard of the cake, further investigations revealed it was not made in the studio but in a domestic kitchen, which could not be guaranteed to be the nut-free environment promised to the brides.
The court heard Selway had vacated the cake studio nine months before accepting the order and therefore knew the cake would not be made in a dedicated studio.
Neither the cake studio nor Selway’s domestic kitchen was registered with Cornwall Council as a food business, as required by law. As a result, neither premises had been subjected to food safety inspections, which would have included assessments of allergen controls and allergen-related claims.
Selway had been advised in writing by the council when she was considering setting up the cake studio that she would need to register as a food business if she pursued the venture and was therefore fully aware of the requirement.
The magistrates fined Selway £896 and ordered her to pay the council’s costs of £3,067, bringing the total penalty to £3,963.
Nick Kelly, group leader for food safety, health and safety and port health, said: “The legislation around allergens in food are there to ensure consumers have accurate advice to enable them to make an informed decision in respect of the foods they consume. In this case, the misleading information could have had life threatening consequences.
“Where businesses fail to meet their legal obligations and put people at risk, the Council will not hesitate to take formal enforcement action.”
Councillor Thalia Marrington, cabinet member for community safety and public protection at Cornwall Council, added: “This case highlights the importance of ensuring businesses provide accurate information in relation to the foods they sell. Making misleading claims is totally unacceptable and in instances like this can be life threatening to the consumer.
“When businesses blatantly disregard their legal obligations and put their customers at risk, we have no choice but to take action.”
