Meat producer’s fine increased after court rejects appeal

In May, Bowland Foods received a fine of £35,400 and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £9,384 after failing to ensure the removal of specific animal parts which breached regulations. The business accepted they were guilty of the offences before the trial but subsequently appealed the size of the fine received.

Bowland Foods failed to remove specific animal parts, which regulations state must be removed before they enter the food chain.

Specific animal parts must be removed before they enter the food chain to reduce risk from brain diseases that cattle, sheep and goats are vulnerable to.

However, following this appeal, the meat cutting plant has been criticised by a judge and has had their fine for public health failures increased.

At a hearing at Preston Crown Court, the appeal was dismissed and the sentence increased significantly after the level of seriousness was considered to have been set too low.

At the first hearing at Preston Magistrates’ Court, Bowland Foods initially pleaded not guilty and argued that the FSA’s prosecution was an abuse of process. However, at the appeal, the judge said this was “an unbridled attack on every aspect of the FSA investigation and preparation of the case for trial”.

“This significantly increased fine further underlines just how seriously breaches of public health regulations are taken by ourselves and the courts,” said Martin Evans, Head of Field Operations at the FSA.

The fine was increased from £35,400 to £60,000 with the full additional costs of £2,319.27 awarded to the FSA, to be added to the costs awarded in the lower court.

As part of the increased fine, the judge reduced the credit they had received for their early guilty plea as a result of the abuse of process arguments that were made.