Sprinkles Gelato served live cockroach to shocked customer at Portsmouth branch

Pictures show the shocked diner's discovery on her slate plate at Sprinkles Gelato in Commercial Road, Portsmouth.

The discovery prompted a Portsmouth City Council inspection on February 20 last year.

Hygiene inspectors uncovered a series of failings, including a ‘significant cockroach activity present in areas where food was being prepared, handled and stored’.

The store's parent company Sprinkles Gelato 3 Limited, in Portswood Road, Southampton, admitted five hygiene charges in court after being prosecuted by Portsmouth City Council.

Portsmouth magistrates fined the firm £5,000 with £100 compensation to the diner.

Pictures taken by inspectors show a sink blocked with dirty crockery, another one for hand washing taped off and grim looking ice cream.

Councillor Dave Ashmore, cabinet member for environment, said: ‘Poor hygiene standards pose a significant risk to public health so I'm pleased that the council's environmental health officers have made another successful prosecution to help to keep our residents safe and to demonstrate that breaches of the law like this won't be tolerated in Portsmouth.’

Failings included not taking reasonable steps to 'protect food produced on the premises from any contamination likely to render the food unfit for human consumption, injurious to health or contaminated in such a way that it would be unreasonable to expect it to be consumed in that state'.

Another charge related to not disinfecting or cleaning servery areas, the cellar store equipment, chillers and freezers effectively or regularly enough.

The firm also failed to have enough hand washbasins in the right place. A hand basin in the rear preparation room was out of use. The one in the front of the store was dirty and obstructed by crockery.

Sprinkles also failed to have the right paperwork under the Food Safety Hygiene Regulations.

The firm must also pay a £170 victim surcharge, and £1,571.59 costs to the city council.

The branch currently has a food hygiene rating of two, awarded in May last year.

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