A C Hopkins (Taunton) Ltd faced a fine of £16,000 for serious food safety offences at North Somerset Magistrates’ Court on 17 December 2024. The abattoir had previously received a remedial action notice on 3 August 2023, mandating the business to ensure that sheep carcasses pending post-mortem inspections did not come into contact with other carcasses.
The company pled guilty to non-compliance with the remedial action notice issued by the Food Standards Agency, breaching regulations 9(5) and 19(2) of the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013.
In addition to the fine, the court ordered A C Hopkins to pay a £2,000 surcharge to support victim services, along with costs amounting to £6,225.78. Consequently, the total financial obligation for the company reached £24,245.78.
Moreover, failures in food safety and hygiene resulted in multiple fines for various food and drink enterprises last year. For instance, in February, the former owners of Bakery Quality First Ltd located in Knowsley were fined and prohibited from managing food businesses after admitting to four counts of violating food hygiene regulations. A routine food safety inspection revealed significant pest activity, including food items gnawed by rodents and a dead rat found in close proximity to food and packaging storage.
Further Consequences for the Industry
As recent trends indicate, the industry has seen various instances of abattoirs facing substantial fines. In March, Higginshaw Abattoir Ltd in Greater Manchester received a £12,000 fine after being found guilty of 11 food safety violations. Investigations revealed that the facility dispatched meat that exceeded the legal temperature limits.
In a broader context, David Wood Baking recently encountered serious repercussions, being fined over half a million pounds due to injuries sustained by three employees in separate incidents dating back to 2022.
