Food company fined for poor health standards

A Canberra company has been fined $11,000 for breaching food standards in a restaurant it ran for 24 years.

The Indian restaurant can no longer be named as it was sold to new owners within weeks of being handed a prohibition notice.

During a routine inspection of the J.A.A.N Enterprises business in April 2011, health inspectors found dirt and grime throughout the kitchen.

They also found uncovered foods, including a lettuce covered by a dirty wash cloth and a number of holes in the ceiling.

The company says it spent $17,000 fixing the problems before being allowed to re-open a week later.

Magistrate David Mossop told the court it was hard to give any specific punishment as the company was no longer trading.

But the prosecution pointed out that the director was now in charge of a Canberra hospitality school, asking Magistrate Mossop to send a message that people who run restaurants must run them to high standards.

Source: ABC News, 5 November 2012