Which one of us would look at our food cupboards at home and think, “this is fine as far as it goes – but I think I’ll get some mice to live in it too and use it as a toilet”? No, none of us would think that: so how can a whole restaurant think this is OK? Perhaps it is just about understandable that a restaurant owner might try to save money by not eradicating pests – but how can cooks and waiters work in infested premises without raising the alarm? Staff wouldn’t serve up an aloo gobi to their mum or their kids if they had to shake the mouse droppings from the cauliflower before they cooked it – so why do they think it is acceptable to hand dishes cooked like this to other people’s mums and children?
Fortunately, Council officers inspected the Al Amin Tandoori Restaurant on Cambridge Heath Road last May. They found dead mice in food storage areas and mouse faeces throughout the kitchen – on container lids, inside cooking trays and on chopping boards. There was also evidence of rodents having gnawed at food and food packaging, as well as widespread evidence of mouse holes in the walls. Additionally, prepared food found in the premises did not meet the necessary temperature requirements.
Mouse faeces can contain salmonellae, leptospirosis and cryptosporidium that can also be passed to humans via contamination of food, food containers, and surfaces in contact with food. Symptoms of food poisoning include sudden onset of fever, severe headache, nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhoea. The very young and the old are most vulnerable.
As a result of the inspection, the restaurant was closed for five days and was only allowed to re-open after Health Inspectors were satisfied that the premises were clean. The owner of the business, Abdul Noor, 56, of Restons Crescent, Eltham, faced six criminal charges, including the inadequate control of pests, contamination of equipment, contamination of food and temperature control. He attended Thames Magistrates’ Court on 8th October, and pleaded guilty on all counts. The court ruled that Noor be fined £1,000 for each of the six breaches of hygiene and costs of £3,143.87. He was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £100.
There are no excuses for running a food business while flagrantly ignoring food hygiene legislation. If you suspect any hygiene breaches in any restaurants you use or work at, contact the Council’s Consumer and Business Regulations service on 020-7364 5008 or email: foodsafety@towerhamlets.gov.uk
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