The owner of an oriental takeaway in St Ives has been fined by magistrates after being charged with three counts of breaching food hygiene offences.

Longwei Chan, owner of St Ives Chinese and Thai Takeaway, in The Broadway, received a hygiene rating of zero after an inspection by environmental health officers in December last year.

Huntingdonshire District Council officer Belinda Betham found cross-contamination risks in the kitchen, blocked drains outside and poor standards of cleaning and disinfection.

Food handlers were also not trained in food safety standard principles with no management system for it in place either.

Following the inspection, Mr Chang agreed to voluntarily close the premises in order to clear the blocked drains and to carry out urgent cleaning and disinfection tasks.

Mr Chang, who was not legally represented, told the court that he had loans to pay and had no weekly income. After admitting the charges, Mr Chang was fined £450 at Peterborough Magistrates Court on March 16, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £45, and told to contribute to the council’s costs of £1,400.