Northern Ireland

Starbucks operator fined after rats found in Belfast city centre cafe

The operator of the Starbucks cafe in Great Victoria Street has been fined
The operator of the Starbucks cafe in Great Victoria Street has been fined The operator of the Starbucks cafe in Great Victoria Street has been fined

THE operator of a Starbucks coffee shop in Belfast has been fined £4,000 for food hygiene offences after rats were detected on the premises.

Ritcin Limited, operators of the Great Victoria Street branch, pleaded guilty at Belfast Magistrates Court yesterday to two offences dating back to 2017.

These were failure to protect food from contamination stemming from rodent activity which was likely to render it unfit for human consumption, and failure to put in place adequate procedures to control pests.

The prosecution was taken by Belfast City Council after an anonymous complaint from a member of the public who reported seeing a rodent inside the café in October 2017.

The company, which closed its premises to deal with the issues, reopened after a short period when environmental health officers from the council were satisfied the risk to public health was removed.

The council was also awarded costs of £3,500.