A dad is outraged that a bakery and deli bar in Ravensthorpe sold him mouldy cake for his daughter’s first birthday.

John Donohoe bought the pink icing-topped sponge cake from La Jawaab on Huddersfield Road.

He didn’t notice it was mouldy until after he had sliced into it and served it to his family at their Mirfield home.

The 22-year-old, who lives with his 24-year-old girlfriend Eniko Horvath, said: “It was our daughter Charlotte’s first birthday so we thought we’d spend a bit more money than usual on a cake.

“I went into La Jawaab and asked if the cakes were fresh and the man serving us said ‘yes, they come from the factory every morning’.

Mouldy cake from La Jawaab

“I went home, put it in the fridge and two to three hours later took it out to give it to all the kids.

“Then I noticed some black so I tasted it and it tasted off.

“When he said it was fresh, I took his word for it so I hadn’t checked the label but there was a sticker on the bottom saying November 1 – four days out of date.”

Unfortunately Charlotte had already eaten some of the cake.

Her parents brought the cake back to the store and got a refund.

Mouldy cake from La Jawaab

“I said to him ‘it’s not freshly made, is it?’ He couldn’t give me an answer. He was just stuttering and saying he’s not the manager,” John added.

“When I asked for their details to report them, he refused to give them to me.

“I went over to the fridge where there were about 15 cakes and most of them were out of date too.”

John reported the incident to the Food Standards Agency.

The district officer for Ravensthorpe told him via email: “I can clearly see the mould growth on the cakes. This should not be happening.

Mouldy cake from La Jawaab

“I will follow this matter up with La Jawaab. I will look at their procedure regarding buying in of products, storage, stock rotation, etc.

“The last inspection notes say that they receive regular deliveries. This wouldn’t appear to be the case with this complaint.

“For your information, I have looked back at the history of the business, including complaint history. We haven’t received any similar complaints.”

The owner of the store, Ansar Mehmood, did not respond to our requests for comment.