Greene King fined £35k for pub hygiene offences

Greene King has been fined £35,000 for hygiene offences after dead flies and mouse droppings were found at a Portsmouth pub.

Environmental health officers visited the Farmhouse in Burrfields Road, Copnor, in August 2007 following complaints about mice. Faeces were found in the children's play area and other parts were found to be dirty. Return visits found little had changed, with more mouse droppings in the ball pool and under the carpet.

The kitchen was found to be unclean and dead flies were found in the ladies' toilets. On a third visit, the ball pool was closed and tests revealed it hadn't been cleaned for 10 months. Greene King was fined and ordered to pay £6,700 costs after admitting seven charges at Portsmouth Magistrates.

Scott Straker, area manager for the Farmhouse, said: "Standards were completely unacceptable and were not up to our usual high levels.

"Since then, the pub has gone from strength to strength. It was recently presented with Greene King's Kitchen of Excellence Award. Our diligent attention to standards is being upheld."