The owner of a number of restaurants in Cumbria has been taken to task over low environmental health standards at one of his eateries.
A two-year conditional discharge was given to Mohammed Hizfur Rahman, owner of the Taj Mahal restaurant in Sedburgh, after he pled guilty at South Lakeland Magistrates Court to breaking food hygiene regulations on five different counts, the Westmorland Gazette reports.
South Lakeland District Council employees with
jobs in environmental health visited the establishment and found that one of the sinks had no water, the fridge contained mould and food was being stored at temperatures deemed to be too high.
Furthermore, staff were using dirty cloths and did not have any protective clothing. They had also worked in partial darkness at one point when unpaid bills led to the power being cut off.
Despite repeated visits from environmental health officers, hygiene standards did not improve.
Mr Rahman's legal counsel said he had been stressed due to difficult personal circumstances, resulting in the failings, but has now "learned his lesson".
Other issues tackled by South Lakeland District Council's environmental health officers include noise, air quality, radiation and contaminated land.
Posted by Marc Casey
