Dangerous machinery leads to fine

A North London food manufacturer has been fined £150,000 for failing to prevent access to dangerous machinery.

The failings came to light following a routine inspection by Britain’s workplace regulator – the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in October 2023.

During the visit to Wembley-based Oriental Delight (UK) Limited, the HSE inspector identified multiple failings related to the guarding of machinery. Three machines were deemed unsafe due to interlocking safety devices being defeated and guards being completely removed.

However, it was not the first time the food company had come onto HSE’s radar, with prohibition notices being issued in both 2016 and 2019.

Identical dangerous machinery failings were again found at the inspection in October 2023, demonstrating that the company had not only failed to sustain improvements, but had effectively ignored the HSE’s previous enforcement action by continuing to use these machines in an unsafe manner.

On 4 September 2024, at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, Oriental Delight (UK) Limited pleaded guilty to three breaches of Regulation 11(1) of The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and was fined £150,000 and ordered to pay costs of £3,020.

Following the hearing, HSE Inspector Marcus Pope said:

“This case sends out a clear message to the food manufacturing industry that HSE will not hesitate to prosecute when inspectors find serious health and safety failings, particularly when previous enforcement and advice has been provided. Once again, we see how critical it is that all employers make sure they properly assess and apply effective control measures to minimise the risk from dangerous parts of machinery.”

Dangerous machinery regulation

The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, often abbreviated to PUWER, place duties on people and companies who own, operate or have control over work equipment aimed at preventing dangerous machinery. PUWER also places responsibilities on businesses and organisations whose employees use work equipment, whether owned by them or not. PUWER requires that equipment provided for use at work is:

suitable for the intended use
safe for use, maintained in a safe condition and inspected to ensure it is correctly installed and does not subsequently deteriorate
used only by people who have received adequate information, instruction and training
accompanied by suitable health and safety measures, such as protective devices and controls. These will normally include guarding, emergency stop devices, adequate means of isolation from sources of energy, clearly visible markings and warning devices
used in accordance with specific requirements, for mobile work equipment and power presses

Some work equipment is subject to other health and safety legislation in addition to PUWER. For example, lifting equipment must also meet the requirements of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), pressure equipment must meet the Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000 and personal protective equipment must meet the Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992 (PPE).

If your business or organisation uses work equipment or is involved in providing work equipment for others to use (e.g. for hire), you must manage the risks from that equipment and ensure no dangerous machinery is used. This means you must:

ensure the equipment is constructed or adapted to be suitable for the purpose it is used or provided for
take account of the working conditions and health and safety risks in the workplace when selecting work equipment
ensure work equipment is only used for suitable purposes
ensure work equipment is maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair
where a machine has a maintenance log, keep this up to date
where the safety of work equipment depends on the manner of installation, it must be inspected after installation and before being put into use
where work equipment is exposed to deteriorating conditions liable to result in dangerous situations, it must be inspected to ensure faults are detected in good time so the risk to health and safety is managed
ensure that all people using, supervising or managing the use of work equipment are provided with adequate, clear health and safety information. This will include, where necessary, written instructions on its use and suitable equipment markings and warnings
ensure that all people who use, supervise or manage the use of work equipment have received adequate training, which should include the correct use of the equipment, the risks that may arise from its use and the precautions to take
where the use of work equipment is likely to involve a specific risk to health and safety (eg woodworking machinery), ensure that the use of the equipment is restricted to those people trained and appointed to use it
take effective measures to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery. This will normally be by fixed guarding but where routine access is needed, interlocked guards (sometimes with guard locking) may be needed to stop the movement of dangerous machinery before a person can reach the danger zone. Where this is not possible, such as with the blade of a circular saw, it must be protected as far as possible and a safe system of work used. These protective measures should follow the hierarchy laid down in PUWER regulation 11(2) and the PUWER Approved Code of Practice and guidance or, for woodworking machinery, the Safe use of woodworking machinery: Approved Code of Practice and guidance
take measures to prevent or control the risks to people from parts and substances falling or being ejected from work equipment, or the rupture or disintegration of work equipment
ensure that the risks from very hot or cold temperatures from the work equipment or the material being processed or used are managed to prevent injury
ensure that work equipment is provided with appropriately identified controls for starting, stopping and controlling it, and that these control systems are safe
where appropriate, provide suitable means of isolating work equipment from all power sources (including electric, hydraulic, pneumatic and gravitational energy)
ensure work equipment is stabilised by clamping or otherwise to avoid injury
take appropriate measures to ensure maintenance operations on work equipment can be carried out safely while the equipment is shut down, without exposing people undertaking maintenance operations to risks to their health and safety

When providing new work equipment for use at work, you must ensure it conforms with the essential requirements of any relevant product supply law (for new machinery this means the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008). You must check it:

has appropriate conformity marking and is labelled with the manufacturer’s details
comes with a Declaration of Conformity
is provided with instructions in English
is free from obvious defects – and that it remains so during its working life

If you require advice on health and safety in your workplace, please contact one of the Ashbrooke team.

27 October 202227 October 2022

Peanut allergy breach

A restaurant worker has been fined for a peanut allergy breach. The worker who served peanuts to a woman with a peanut allergy putting her in hospital on her 18th birthday was fined in court.

Eleanor Lincoln ate the takeaway, a chicken tikka masala, at home as part of a family birthday celebration. But very quickly she went into anaphylactic shock and had to be treated by her mum with adrenalin via an Epi pen before being taken to hospital by ambulance.

Doctors at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle had to administer Miss Lincoln, who was struggling to breathe, with steroids. She was kept in hospital overnight for observation but discharged the next day.

Newcastle City Council’s Environmental Health Team launched an investigation into the incident.

Inspectors found that when the order was made in March 2021, during lockdown in the pandemic, the family specifically asked for no peanuts, but staff missed the crucial information. Peanut and almond protein were found in the meal.

The Council charged the food business operator, Samir Najeeb, of Khan’s Restaurant, Heaton Road, Newcastle, with two breaches, one under the Food Safety and Hygiene Regulations 2013 and one under the Food Safety Act 1990. He pleaded not guilty to both charges but was found guilty of the Food Hygiene Regulations charge. The charge under the Food Safety Act was dismissed by the court.

Najeeb was fined £450 with £3,000 in costs at Newcastle Magistrates Court.

Council cabinet member for a Dynamic City, Councillor Irim Ali, who has responsibility for regulation, said:

“People have died from food allergies and contaminated food from takeaways and restaurants. I can’t emphasise enough the seriousness of this case. Thankfully Eleanor is fit and well now. The case highlights the need for very strict management of food orders and great care needed when serving food. There is no room for complacency or error. The public must be confident that businesses are safe and take no risk with their safety. We are committed to supporting businesses with training and help but will hold those to account that put lives at risk.”

Miss Lincoln has fully recovered from her ordeal and is now at university.

Peanut allergy breach — Photo by Eren Li

The case highlights the importance of food establishments having robust food safety management systems in place and staff being trained in allergen management.

It also underlines the importance of understanding customer requests for allergen free meals, the general importance of allergen awareness to food operators and customers.

An estimated 1-2% of adults and 5-8% of children in the UK have a food allergy which is around 2 million people. Nut allergies affect approximately 1 in 50 children and around 1 in 200 adults in the UK.

In September 2021, a joint health promotion programme was undertaken with both Newcastle and Northumbria Universities and North East Ambulance Service, aimed at new students coming to live in the city and visiting the city’s many and varied food establishments. The promotional event urged takeaway lovers to be more allergy aware.

Allergy Awareness Top Tips

The majority of the allergy reports relate to 17 to 30-year-olds ordering takeaways or food in bars and nightclubs, and so organisations are working together to offer top tips to students to keep themselves and others safe:

Be allergy aware – Find out if anyone in the group you are ordering for has a food allergy.
Speak to the restaurant every time – If ordering by app, do not rely on the in-app messaging service. Call the restaurant directly and make sure they understand the allergy. Remember to ask, even when ordering the usual, because the recipe, ingredients, chef or kitchen staff may have changed.
Be clear – Give examples of food that could cause a reaction and be clear about the allergy.
Ask the restaurant to label the allergy-safe meal – Make sure the container will be labelled so that it is clear when the meal arrives and there is no risk of cross-contamination.
Follow your instincts – If the person you are ordering from does not understand the allergy or intolerance, ask to speak to the manager. If you still do not feel confident, consider ordering elsewhere.
Do not feel embarrassed – There is no need to feel awkward asking about an allergy. Food business are legally required to make allergen information available when you order and when the food is delivered.

Allergy Guidance

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) publishes guidance for food businesses on allergy safeguards and controls.

Food business operators in the retail and catering sector are required to provide allergen information and follow labelling rules as set out in food law (Opens in a new window).

This means that food business operators must:

provide allergen information to the consumer for both prepacked and non-prepacked food and drink
handle and manage food allergens effectively in food preparation.

Food businesses must make sure that staff receive training on allergens. Staff can complete the FSA’s free food allergy training. Managers can also share the FSA’s allergen checklist with staff for tips on food allergy best-practice.

The FSA also has separate guidance for food manufacturers and institutional caterers such as schools and care homes.

Allergens

Food businesses need to tell customers if any food they provide contain any of the listed allergens as an ingredient.

Consumers may be allergic or have intolerance to other ingredients, but only the 14 allergens are required to be declared as allergens by food law.

The 14 allergens are:

celery
cereals containing gluten (such as barley and oats)
crustaceans (such as prawns, crabs and lobsters)
eggs
fish
lupin
milk
molluscs (such as mussels and oysters)
mustard
peanuts
sesame
soybeans
sulphur dioxide and sulphites (if the sulphur dioxide and sulphites are at a concentration of more than ten parts per million) and
tree nuts (such as almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, brazil nuts, cashews, pecans, pistachios and macadamia nuts).

This also applies to additives, processing aids and any other substances which are present in the final product.

Allergen labelling

There are a number of ways in which allergen information can be provided to your customers. You will need to choose the method which is best for your business and the type of food you serve.

Prepacked foods refer to any food put into packaging before being placed on sale, while non-prepacked food (loose food) is unpackaged food. Different allergen labelling rules apply depending on how the food is provided.

The FSA has published technical guidance which provides a detailed explanation of the labelling requirements for each food type.

If your business needs food safety advice, please contact one of the Ashbrooke team.

21 October 202221 October 2022

Food Law Code consultation

On 17 October 2022, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) launched a 12-week Food Law Code consultation. The consultation is seeking views from local authorities (LA), food business operators, unions and interested groups on the proposed changes to the Food Law Code of Practice in England.

The proposals involve fundamental changes to the food standards delivery model within the Code, and associated content, namely the introduction of a:

new food standards risk rating scheme that LA officers will use to evaluate the risk posed by a food business
new decision matrix to determine the frequency at which food standards official controls should be delivered in line with the outcome of the risk assessment

Local authorities follow the Code when carrying out official food controls. The Code requires regular review and revision to ensure that it reflects current priorities, policy, and legislative requirements so that the local authority delivery of official food controls remain effective, consistent, and appropriate.

Food Law Code consultation — Changes proposed for Food Law Code of Practice in England

The changes that the FSA are proposing will introduce a new food standards delivery model. The new model will allow local authorities to have flexibility to use any of the official control methods and techniques available and direct local authority resource to where it is most needed to tackle risk in the food chain.

“The Food Law Code of Practice enables us to ensure food is safe and what it says it is. The proposed amendments to the Code will enable local authorities to manage resources more effectively, by prioritising their activities on food businesses that pose the highest risk to public health and consumers.
“As part of the consultation process, we are planning a series of local authority engagement events to discuss the new model and the changes that are being proposed. The consultation ends on 9 January 2023, so we would encourage all those who have an interest in this to respond over the next 12 weeks.”
Michael Jackson, Head of Regulatory Compliance Division (FSA)

The consultation page is available on the FSA website, where you can also find out about the Food Law Code of Practice. All comments and views should be included in the consultation response form and sent to: CodeReviewResponses@food.gov.uk

The consultation will close at midnight on 9 January 2023.

If you require food safety advice or support for your business, please contact one of the Ashbrooke team.

14 August 202022 August 2022

National Food Strategy Published

The first major review of the UK food system in 75 years has been undertaken with Part 1 of the National Food Strategy published on 29 July 2020. The review was headed by Henry Dimbleby who co-founded the Leon restaurant chain, before going on to become Director of London Union, which runs some of London’s most successful street food markets.

2 August 202021 August 2022