Two food businesses in West London have been fined more than £25,000 after inspectors found serious hygiene failings, including infestations of mice and cockroaches.
The prosecutions followed investigations by Ealing Council’s food safety officers, who said the businesses posed an “imminent risk to public health.”
Sciascia Storey and Co Ltd, based at Acton Business Centre in Park Royal, supplies bread and pastry products to restaurants and hotels.
At Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on 8 July, director Julian Sciascia pleaded guilty on behalf of the company to several offences. These included failing to control pests, failing to protect food from contamination, and failing to keep equipment clean.
The case followed two enforced closures of the business. In January 2024, officers found a mouse infestation and ordered the bakery to shut. After improvements were made, it was allowed to reopen the following month.
But in July 2024, inspectors again found mice and a contamination risk. The bakery was closed once more before being allowed to reopen later that month after further checks.
The company was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay £5,120 in costs, bringing the total to over £17,000. It continues to operate in the borough but does not have a public food hygiene rating because it supplies other businesses.
On the same day in court, Southall Deshi Bazar Ltd, a butcher and grocery shop in Palace Shopping Centre, also faced prosecution.
Council officers had found mice and cockroach infestations, raw meat stored at unsafe temperatures, and poor cleaning practices during an inspection in February 2024. The shop’s hygiene rating was reduced to 0, the lowest possible score, before later being raised to 2 in March 2025.
The company and its director, Mohammed Belal of Argyll Avenue in Southall, both pleaded guilty. Belal was fined £461 and ordered to pay £800 in costs plus a £184 victim surcharge. The company itself was fined £4,000 and ordered to pay £2,827 in costs. In total, they were left with a bill of more than £8,000.
Councillor Kamaljit Nagpal, the council’s cabinet member for decent living incomes, said: “These appalling cases again highlight the council’s firm commitment to holding food businesses accountable when they fail to meet hygiene standards and put public safety at risk.
“Fortunately, the majority of food businesses in the borough are responsible and take pride in maintaining clean, safe environments for their customers. We remain dedicated to supporting those businesses to grow and succeed. In recent years, we have focused on providing advice and training for food businesses, to help them earn and maintain good food hygiene rating scores.
“In rare instances like these, where serious health risks are identified, we will act decisively to protect the public. We have undertaken a record number of food hygiene inspections in recent years.”
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