Author Archives: AB Food Safety

Indian restaurant owner found guilty of the death of customer from peanut allergy

Restaurant owner Mohammed Zaman

has been found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence and given a 6 year prison sentence after the tragic death of Paul Wilson who died as a result of a fatal allergic reaction after eating a curry that contained peanuts.

A change in the law with regard to allergens in food came into force in December 2014 just months after the tragedy struck. The curry was purchased in January 2014 and contained peanuts.

The jury was told almond powder had been swapped for a cheaper ground nut mix which contained peanuts. Customers were not informed the product contained peanuts and it appears there was an earlier incident involving a teenage girl who also suffered an allergic reaction to a curry bought from one of Mr Zaman’s restaurants and he had been warned about the use of ground nut mix but had put profit before customer safety.

Food allergies are on the increase and currently approximately ten people die annually from food allergy problems.

Food business owners have legal responsibilities to provide information to the customer regarding allergens. Staff should also be trained and given the correct tools to enable them to provide reliable advice to customers.

Thomas of York fined £6500 + Costs

Thomas of York fined £6500 + costs for safety breaches an employee was left with several broken fingers in February 2015 when his hand was pulled into a pastry lid maker. The machine had been modified and some of the guarding system had been removed

Chef and manager jailed following food poisoning outbreak on Christmas Day

Christmas day 2012 a busy pub owned by Mitchells & Butlers made 33 customers ill with Clostridium Perfringens food poisoning bacteria resulting in 1 fatality.

A long investigation concluded that Mitchells & Butlers failed to comply with Article 14 (1) Regulation (EC)   178/2002 and were fined £1.5 Million for putting unsafe food on the market and didn’t do everything they could to prevent the food poisoning outbreak.

The investigation was hindered by the manager and the chef completing food safety documentation retrospectively; therefore falsifying the documentation and was subsequently charged with perverting the course of justice. They were sent to prison for 18 months (Manager) & 12 months (Chef).

Andrea’s comments
“I think this case exceptionally sad and goes on to demonstrate why it is critical to follow food safety procedures at all times more so during busy periods. Falsifying documentation will not stand up against laboratory results hence proving the documentation is not a true reflection of what actually happened. Unlike Mitchells & Butlers smaller businesses would have not survived this unfortunate situation”