A GROCERY shop in Rhyl has received a markedly improved food hygiene rating a year-and-a-half after it was handed a score of zero.

Seagull International Foods, which has a store on Bedford Street, was told that “major improvement (was) necessary” following an unplanned Food Standards Agency inspection on August 17, 2022.

At Llandudno Magistrates’ Court on October 24, having admitted five counts of failing to comply with specified food hygiene provisions, it was ordered to pay a sum of £24,922.49.

But following a re-inspection on February 7, it was rated four-out-of-five (“good”) by the agency.

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Its hygienic handling of food, and cleanliness and condition of its facilities, were rated “good”, while its management of food safety was deemed “generally satisfactory”.

In terms of food hygiene, inspectors found a “high standard of compliance” with regulations, though noted some shortcomings in this regard.

These included the fridge on the shop floor adjacent to the warehouse door operating at 9.9°C, rather than the required temperature of at or below 8°C.

Likewise, inspectors found “minor non-compliance” in terms of cleanliness, such as “signs of wear” on the shop floor, “flaking paint to the wall”, and evidence of rust.

Inspectors also noticed a single mouse dropping on a shelf, as well as a “strong odour” emanating from an unused walk-in chilled unit which was found to be “filled with debris”.

During the August 2022 inspection, a number of cheeses, as well as chicken and sausages, were found to be on sale despite being past their sell-by-date.

Mouse droppings were found on shelves of the dried rice section, with bags of rice having been gnawed at, while two dead mice were found under a shelving unit.

Raw frozen chicken was found stored in a carrier bag in a freezer on the shop floor, while bottles of drink and cans of cooking oil and chickpeas were being stored directly on the floor.