A grocer, who sold rotting fruit and vegetables despite more than a year of warnings from food inspectors, has been fined.
Sadaqad Ali who runs Haji Food Store, Birkby, was fined £1,400 plus £1,000 costs by a district judge at Kirklees Magistrates Court yesterday.
The court heard Ali, 44, had sold rotting carrots, cucumbers, onions, apples, spinach and strawberries at the Blacker Road shop in May, 2013.
Food inspectors visited the store repeatedly between February, 2012, and May, 2013, each time warning Ali about his failure to meet regulations.
On one visit, inspectors found all of the spinach on display was rotting.
Yesterday Ali admitted eight breaches of EU regulations governing the sale of horticultural produce.
The dad-of-two also admitted six charges of failing to label produce according to EU laws.
When questioned by food inspectors Ali, who had owned the store for three years, claimed he was being ‘picked on’.
He claimed he obtained ‘the best produce available’, the court heard yesterday.
Defending Tahir Mahmood said Ali spoke very poor English and had not always been able to understand the inspectors.
Mr Mahmood said the business had been struggling and that since the inspections, Ali had ‘redoubled efforts’ to comply with regulations.
Sentencing, District Judge David Scanlon, said: “It is your first and foremost responsibility to meet any legal requirements.”
Holding up a photograph of some of Ali’s rotten produce, Mr Scanlon added: “Despite potential difficulties in language or reading, how anyone can call that fresh fruit and vegetables I do not know. The fact you didn’t check your legal requirements or just ignored your legal requirements or just took a chance that these (inspectors) who continually visited might just one day leave you alone, is no excuse whatsoever.”
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