UK grocery store so ‘soiled’ that rats gnawed via meals earlier than dying and rotting

Gorton Superstore in Greater Manchester has been slapped with a hefty fine after health inspectors found the place crawling with rats, with gnawed packaging and dead rodents scattered about.

The grim discovery at the Hyde Road shop in Gorton was made by health chiefs who described it as having an “active rat infestation” in “dirty” conditions complete with neglected traps. At Manchester Magistrates’ Court, owner 40-year-old Christian Ogbonna admitted to six breaches of food and hygiene laws, in what’s been dubbed a “disgraceful breach of food safety standards”.

The shocking state of affairs was uncovered during an August 2023 inspection by the Council’s Environmental Health Team, who reported finding a slew of serious food safety and hygiene violations.

“There was an active rodent infestation, with a number of dead and decomposing animals found throughout the premises, as well as in un-emptied traps,” said the council, as per the Manchester Evening News. “Gnawed food packaging was also found, as well as the overall premises being dirty, with poor hygiene practices demonstrated throughout. There was no pest control contract in place, there was no food management documentation that would set out controls for cleaning and stock rotation.”

Councillor Joanna Midgley, Deputy Leader of Manchester City Council, blasted the grim findings which led to a monstrous £12,000 fine and boomed: “This was a disgraceful breach of food safety standards and one that deserved to be met with the full force of the law. These conditions could have led to extreme harm and the size of the fine imposed demonstrates just how serious this case was.

“I hope that the owner takes responsibility for what they have done and commits to making immediate and drastic improvements to the way they run their business. I hope this sends a clear message on just how seriously the Council treats food safety and hygiene violations and how vital it is that standards are maintained across this industry.”

In court, the eatery was hit with a whopping £12,000 fine for its gross mishandling, with additional costs of £3,180 lumped onto them. The director, Ogbonna from Manchester, wasn’t let off easy either as he got slapped with a £1,066 fine, stung with a £426 victim surcharge and is coughing up another £3,180 in costs.

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