Takeaway owner fined over filthy conditions
THE owner of a Chinese takeaway has been hauled before court after inspectors found the premises in a disgusting state.
Chi Wui Kong, the former owner of Hodge Road Oriental in Worsley, has been ordered to pay £1,000 after appearing at Manchester Magistrates Court.
Environmental health officers visited the takeaway in January as part of a routine inspection and reported smelling stale grease as soon as they entered the kitchen.
They also found large amounts of food debris and grease on the floors, preparation tables and shelves throughout the kitchen and food preparation rooms.
It was clear to inspectors given the amount of grease on the splashback behind the cooker that a deep clean had not taken place for some time, the court heard.
The boiler in the premises wasn’t working so there was no hot water, and no records had been kept showing how long it had been out of action or what measures were in place to keep the shop clean.
By law, Mr Kong should have kept daily safety records showing that daily opening and closing checks were being made.
The booklet to record such checks hadn’t been updated since March 2018, despite council officers warning Mr Kong on a previous occasion in December 2017.
Mr Kong did comply and improve cleaning after that. The takeaway was given a food hygiene rating of 1 and listed for annual inspections.
In January 2019, Salford City Council issued further hygiene improvement notices for the implementation of an effective food safety management system and provision of hot water for effective cleaning, which were complied with, and cleaning also improved.
Mr Kong left the business and it closed for a number of months. It reopened under different ownership and achieved a food hygiene rating of 5 in September 2021.
Mr Kong pleaded guilty to three offences of failing to keep the premises clean, failing to ensure the provision of adequate facilities for the cleaning of working utensils and equipment and failing to implement effective monitoring procedures as part of the food safety management system.
He was fined £180, ordered to pay £1,000 in costs and £34 in victim surcharge.