Dubai company 'repackaged and sold' mouldy food

Staff at a company that supplies food to popular restaurants altered the labels on expired food that was unfit for human consumption and resold it, a court heard.

DUBAI // Staff at a company that supplies food to five-star hotels and popular restaurants altered the labels on expired food that was unfit for human consumption and resold it, a court heard yesterday. The five men - TL, 42, an Indian national and a partner in the company; fellow Indians AB, 35, an assistant warehouse supervisor, and JV, 39, a security guard; and labourers RT, 39, and MP - were charged at the Dubai Court of Misdemeanours. They work for Binca International, which supplied frozen seafood, sushi, noodles and packaged juices to restaurants including Noodle House and Wagamama, and hotel chains including Jumeirah Group, the operator of the Burj al Arab.

Some of the food sold by the five men was fermenting and contained bacteria, the court was told. TL is also charged with failing to report a deportee and operating outside a free zone without a licence. Officials close to the investigation said some of Binca's clients had stopped dealing with the company in light of the allegations. The offences were discovered by a food inspection team from Dubai Municipality at the company's warehouses in Jebel Ali.

The inspection team immediately reported the case to Jebel Ali police. The presiding judge, Jamaledine Abdel Majid, refused a request by the defendants' lawyers for them to be released on bail, and adjourned the case until June 30. @Email:[e-mail]