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Congealed food, stagnant water and mould: Customer’s shock at finding filthy shelves in Tesco superstore

Sylvia Tyler found the shelves of Tesco branch in Slough covered in filth
Says there was mould in the dairy section and a packet of ham trapped between the shelves for two weeks
But when she complained to a manager he insisted it was ‘difficult to clean’
Health officials launch investigation into conditions at the Tesco store
Retailer previously fined thousands of pounds over hygiene breaches

A customer has described her horror at finding mouldy food, congealed fat and stagnant water on the shelves of a Tesco superstore.

When Sylvia Tyler noticed the filth, which sat alongside dozens of fresh food items, she complained to store bosses – but they told her the area was ‘difficult to clean’.

And two weeks later, the shelves had still not been cleaned even though the huge supermarket employs 600 staff.

Officials have launched an investigation into the store owned by Britain’s biggest retailer, which has previously been fined thousands of pounds for breaching hygiene rules.

Filth: A Tesco customer found the supermarket’s shelves caked in grime with food items just lying around

Complaint: Sylvia Tyler noticed the off-putting scene at a superstore in Slough, pictured

Photographs of the mess at the Tesco Extra superstore in Slough, Berkshire show what appears to be congealed cream and fat, old food debris and layers of dirt in pools of water standing in the gaps between the shelves.

Ms Tyler, 42, was browsing the ‘reduced to clear’ section when she noticed the dirt as well as a packet of ham trapped between the cabinets.

‘I just happened to look down and thought to myself, “Look at the state of that,”‘ she told the Mail. ‘I turned to another customer next to me and said “Have you seen that?” and he said, “I’m not touching anything for sale on here.”‘

The mother of three approached a store supervisor and pointed out the filth – but she claims he was ‘blasé’ about the problem.

‘I said, “Don’t you think this needs to be sorted out? This is a health and safety issue.” He said it was difficult to clean but would ask a staff member to sort it out. But he didn’t seem at all bothered.’

Anger: Ms Tyler says that a store manager told her the shelves were ‘difficult to clean’

Grimy: There appeared to be bits of food and stagnant water in between many of the shelves

When Ms Tyler visited the store again two weeks later, the shelves were apparently in an even worse state than before – and the same pack of ham was still there.

She inspected other aisles, and found a thick mouldy residue in the dairy section.

‘I was mortified,’ she said. ‘The air can circulate and contaminate the food. I was disgusted that they’re kept in this state and incredibly disappointed that such a big company hasn’t taken any action.

‘If that’s what it’s like on display, what’s it like behind the scenes?’

Ms Tyler has since reported the issue to local environmental health officials. A spokesman for Slough Borough Council said that they have received a complaint and are currently looking into it.

Apology: Tesco says it is ‘disappointed’ by the failure to clean the shelves properly

Report: Ms Tyler complained to her local environmental health department about the incident

A spokesman for Tesco said the supermarket giant was ‘disappointed’ to hear of the incident, and assured customers that the shelves in the Slough store have now been cleaned.

‘We maintain very high standards of hygiene and cleanliness in our stores, and we’re disappointed that those were not met on this occasion,’ he said.

‘Colleagues regularly deep-clean all of the shelving in the stores and we’ve taken action to return the shelves to their usual high standards.’

Last year the company was fined £45,000 after health inspectors found that one of their London stores was infested with mice.

The Tesco Metro outlet in Covent Garden was covered in dirt and rodent droppings, a court heard – while one inspector found an enormous ‘super mouse’ running around the premises.

In the past five years, three other branches of the retail giant have been fined for unhygienic conditions.

In addition, the supermarket was at the centre of last year’s horsemeat scandal after it emerged that some of its own-brand mince products contained up to 60 per cent horse instead of beef.

Sourced from the dailymail.com