Legal News

A meat company based in Derbyshire has been fined £1,000 after meat for human consumption past its sell-by date was found on its premises and condemned.

The out-of-date meat products were found at Greg Young Wholesale Meats Ltd – trading as Dougies Meats – following a joint inspection by Environmental Health Officers from Bolsover District and North East Derbyshire District councils.

The company operates from three large vans selling raw meat at various local markets, pub car parks and shop car parks. Dougies Meats also trades extensively in locations in Sheffield, Rotherham and Doncaster.

The meat was seized during the inspection in October, at the company base at Nevada Park Farm, Killamarsh in northeast Derbyshire.

The inspection was part of an ongoing wider investigation carried out with Trading Standards and in consultation with the Food Standards Agency.

The inspection also found that no suitable food safety management systems were in place to ensure that the food was safe for human consumption.

An application by the council relating to the meat products seized from Greg Young Wholesale Meats Ltd was heard at Chesterfield Magistrates’ Court.

Magistrates heard that three-quarters of a tonne of meat found on the premises was either past its use-by date – or the use-by dates had been removed.

The Court ordered the destruction of the seized food – and also ordered Greg Young Wholesale Meats Ltd to pay the costs of storage and destruction of the condemned meat, totalling more than £1,000.

After the hearing, Bolsover District Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, Councillor Brian Murray-Carr, said:

“The public need to be confident that they are buying good quality produce that is safe to eat.

“That’s why our regular food safety inspections of business premises are vitally important, so issues such as this can be brought to light and dealt with.

“In this case the food was quickly removed from the food chain so as to protect consumers.”

North East Derbyshire District Council’s Cabinet Member with responsibility for the Environment, Cllr Michael Gordon, added:

“To have inadequate safety procedures in place and sell out-of-date produce is wholly irresponsible.

“It seems this company only has profit in mind and have a total disregard for the public’s safety – something which the Magistrate agreed with and is reflected in the outcome of the court case.”

Duncan Lewis Criminal Lawyers

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For expert legal advice on charges involving food safety or public protection offences, call Duncan Lewis criminal lawyers on 0333 772 0409.

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