West Midlands bakery shut down due to pests

Environmental health officers discovered a Birmingham bakery infested with rats, mice and cockroaches whilst out looking for shops selling a drink with a banned chemical.

At a hearing on Monday, October 26, Birmingham Magistrates Court was told an exercise was being carried out in Stratford Road where retailers were being visited and asked to remove cans and bottles of the fruit drink Shani which contains EDTA, a chemical banned in drinks in the UK.

But when Birmingham City Council officers visited Al Medina Bakery Ltd on Thursday, October 22, they spotted a dead adult cockroach on a box.

An on-the-spot inspection was carried out which uncovered other issues including more cockroaches and mouse and rat droppings and a lack of effective cleaning.

A hygiene emergency prohibition notice was served on the premises, ordering it to shut down.

Officers revisited the bakery on Monday (October 26) and said the works needed to rectify all the issues have yet to be completed.

Environmental health officer Kizzy Bent told the court: “I was out carrying out an exercise looking for businesses selling the drink with the banned chemical.

“I noticed the drink in the (Al Medina Bakery) shop window and went in to address the issue and ask for it to removed and sent back to the suppliers.

“I then discovered problems with pest activity. I noticed a white box containing aprons with an adult cockroach which was dead on top of it. That led me to keep going further.”

She said rat droppings were found behind a fridge freezer and on top of it. Mouse droppings were also discovered throughout the property.

A cockroach was found in another fridge and, when the door to that fridge was opened, a dead one was found which had been squashed against the frame when the door was closed.

Food packet and packaging used to wrap food was also found gnawed by rodents.

Ms Bent added: “The premises knew it had a problem but it was still trading. I was satisfied there is an imminent risk to public health.”

On the revisit on October 26, she said the business has treated for cockroaches but other work remained outstanding, such as filling in holes to stop pests getting in, and determined the risk remains.

Birmingham Magistrates granted a hygiene emergency prohibition order and the business will have to complete a full schedule of works to rectify the issues before it can reopen.