Details on two Merry Hill Costa Coffee hygiene ratings released after mouse droppings found

The inspections took place in March, and both stores were handed one out of five, the second-worst possible rating.

The two stores are:

• Costa Coffee, Kiosk 27, Merry Hill Centre, Brierley Hill, DY5 1QX - inspection date: March 6
• Costa Coffee, Kiosk 29 (Lower mall), Merry Hill Centre, Brierley Hill, DY5 1QX - inspection date: March 7

Following the inspections, a spokesperson for Costa Coffee stated that both stores have since made changes and satisfied the local environmental officer, and are ready for reinspection and will be applying for revisits in the near future, with the confidence that they will be rated highly once again.

A spokesperson for Costa Coffee said: "Following the recent EHO ratings at the two Costa Coffee’s in Merry Hill, Dudley, immediate action was taken to resolve all issues, including working with the shopping centre on the rodent issue impacting the wider centre.

"Both Costa Coffee stores have satisfied the local Environmental Health Officer and are ready for reinspection. We will be applying for revisits in the near future, and remain confident that on reinspection, the stores will be rating highly once again."

Hygiene report details of Costa Coffee Kiosk 27 inspection:

The full report from the hygiene inspector says: "I was disappointed to note that at the time of the inspection mouse droppings were found to the shelf which contained the microwave, a low level shelf beneath the microwave, the floor beneath the sandwich chiller and cake display unit, the cupboard beneath the sink and also inside the electrical cupboard.

"Adequate procedures must be in place to control pests within your premises, you must ensure that the business is not solely reliant upon the visits of your external pest contractor and that staff are carrying out their own checks on a regular basis.

"I understand that a pest check is not part of the routine daily checks and you rely on staff vigilance during routine cleaning to identify any issues. You must ensure that staff are adequately trained to carry out these checks and are aware of the standards expected by the company.

"From conversations with staff it was unclear when/if the weekly/monthly cleaning had been completed therefore it was difficult to establish when the areas where droppings had been found had been last cleaned. You must ensure that tasks are completed when required and that your monitoring records reflect the situation on site.

"I understand that the ‘daily pest walk checklist’ is completed only when an issue with pests has been identified and that this check is limited to one week after there has been no evidence of pests. A pest check should be carried out as part of your opening routine and documented in your monitoring book in order to prevent a similar issue recurring in the future.

"Your Food Safety Management Procedure appears to be a standard template which covers all Costa Branches and Stores. You should review your procedures to ensure that this document adequately covers significant hazards relating to the Kiosks which may not be the same as within an enclosed premises, particularly with regard to pest control.

"There were mouse droppings to surfaces within the premises. Food must be protected from contamination at all stages. Ensure that all of these surfaces are disinfected as a matter of urgency."

Further details state what issues were found along with instructions on what to do:

• There were mouse droppings to the shelf used to store the microwave. Remove droppings and clean all surfaces and maintain them in a clean condition.
• There were mouse droppings to the floor beneath the sandwich chiller. Clean the floor and maintain it in a clean condition.
• There were mouse droppings to the floor beneath the cake display unit. Clean the floor and maintain it in a clean condition.
• There were mouse droppings in the cupboard beneath the sink. Remove the droppings and maintain the surfaces in a clean condition.
• There was a gap to the back of the cupboard beneath the sink. Repair the back of the cupboard so as to prevent access by pests.
• There was a leak to pipework beneath the sink. Repair the leak and maintain the pipework in good repair and condition.
• The wall adjacent to the coffee machine was stained at low level. Clean the wall and maintain it in a clean condition.

Hygiene report details of Costa Coffee Kiosk 29 inspection:

The report from the hygiene inspector says: "I was disappointed to note that at the time of the inspection mouse droppings were found in a cupboard used to store bottled water, to the floor behind the ice machine and also to the floor beneath shelving in the dry store.

"Adequate procedures must be in place to control pests within your premises, you must ensure that the business is not solely reliant upon the visits of your external pest contractor and that staff are carrying out their own checks on a regular basis.

"I understand that a pest check is not part of the routine daily checks and you rely on staff vigilance during routine cleaning to identify any issues. You must ensure that staff are adequately trained to carry out these checks and are aware of the standards expected by the company.

"From conversations with staff it was unclear when/if the weekly/monthly cleaning had been completed therefore it was difficult to establish when the areas where droppings had been found had been last cleaned. You must ensure that tasks are completed when required and that your monitoring records reflect the situation on site.

"I understand that the ‘daily pest walk checklist’ is completed only when an issue with pests has been identified and that this check is limited to one week after there has been no evidence of pests. A pest check should be carried out as part of your opening routine and documented in your monitoring book in order to prevent a similar issue recurring in the future.

"Your Food Safety Management Procedure appears to be a standard template which covers all Costa Branches and Stores. You should review your procedures to ensure that this document adequately covers significant hazards relating to the Kiosks which may not be the same as within an enclosed premises, particularly with regard to pest control.

"There was outstanding pest proofing work identified by your pest contractor as requiring completion on 3 January 2023 after pest activity had been witnessed within the premises. This work has not been completed. You must ensure that you carry out works identified by your pest contractor has a matter of priority, particularly as an issue with pests was ongoing at that time.

"There were mouse droppings to surfaces inside a cupboard where bottled water was being stored. Some bottles were stored within packaging and some was not.

Food must be protected from contamination at all stages. Ensure that all of these bottles are disinfected before they are offered for sale."

Further details give more details along with instructions for the store to undertake:

• There were mouse droppings in the bottle store. Remove droppings and clean all surfaces and maintain them in a clean condition.
• There was debris to the floor beneath the sandwich chiller. Clean the floor and maintain it in a clean condition.
• There was a small gap near to the door between the front and rear servery which your pest contractor had identified as being a possible entry point for pests. Seal the hole so as to prevent access by pests.
• There were a number of mouse droppings to the floor behind the ice machine. Remove the droppings and maintain the floor in a clean condition.
• There were mouse droppings to the floor beneath the shelving in the dry store. Remove the droppings and maintain the floor in a clean condition.

A spokesperson for Merry Hill said: “The health and safety of anyone who visits or works at Merry Hill is always our top priority and amongst many measures we have in place, we have a strict policy covering this particular area. We’d like to reassure customers that this issue has since been resolved, and the Costa stores are trading normally again.

“On an ongoing basis, we work closely with our retailers and Dudley Environmental Health to ensure the centre has high standards of safety and hygiene.”