Lancashire takeaway fined over allergen breaches

PizzaUno & Shawarma Ltd in Nelson has been operating since 2017

A takeaway business has been fined for "potentially harmful" food allergen breaches which "could have had severe consequences".

Posing as a customer with a milk allergy, a Lancashire County Council trading standards officer ordered a chicken tikka naan from PizzaUno in Nelson in July 2023.

Tests found the meal contained sufficient levels of milk protein to be potentially harmful to someone with a milk allergy.

At Lancaster Magistrates' Court, the takeaway admitted two food safety offences and was ordered to pay £8,076, including a £5,000 fine, victim surcharge and costs.

Michael Green, the council's cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said the prosecution highlighted "how vital it is for businesses to take allergens seriously and to provide food that is safe for people with allergies".

He added: "This failure could have had severe consequences had the food been eaten by someone with a milk allergy."

Mr Green encouraged other businesses to "take advantage" of allergen awareness training provided by the local authority.

PizzaUno & Shawarma Ltd's manager Faiz Ul Hassan, who served the food, blamed a communication error for the breaches.

The council said he had explained that a linguistic difference between yoghurt and milk in his native language meant he did not understand yoghurt contained milk.

He also incorrectly claimed the cooking process would eliminate most of the yoghurt, the council said.

Farzana Bibi stated that while the day-to-day management of the business was delegated to her husband, as the company's sole director she accepted responsibility.