Businessman Fined Nearly £5,000 for Unsafe Meat Processing in Home Garden

A court has heard that a businessman, who operated a barbecue event company, processed wild boar, deer, and pheasants by skinning and butchering them in his residential garden. Ionut Adrian Apetroaie, aged 44, appeared before Swindon Magistrates Court on Monday, where he received a fine after admitting guilt to seven charges, a significant number of which concerned food safety regulations. In 2023, authorities confiscated between 200 and 300 kilograms of meat and other food items from his residence. Mr. Apetroaie, who faces payments totaling nearly £5,000 in fines and associated costs, stated his belief that he was complying with all necessary requirements by obtaining food hygiene training and insurance. He explained that he attempted to verify the regulations but consulted a parish council rather than a municipal authority. The court was informed that officers discovered evidence indicating that a business named Romeat was operating from the property located at Marigold Close, Haydon Wick. During Monday’s proceedings, District Judge Joanna Dickens was told that Mr. Apetroaie regularly visited Smithfield Market and Billingsgate Market in London to procure food for his personal use, as well as for relatives, acquaintances, and community members who placed food orders with him through WhatsApp or social media platforms. He promoted his services as an event catering business available for hire and arranged several themed gatherings, including a chess competition, a summer barbecue, and a planned Halloween party. The court was informed that animal carcasses were observed hanging from a pull-up bar at the residence. The premises lacked adequately hygienic spaces for the safe production of food or storage of equipment; for instance, the breeze block garage utilized for these activities also contained DIY tools. Vacuum packing and smoking operations were conducted without proper controls, and products either bore non-compliant labels or lacked them entirely. Furthermore, some food items had been kept outside of temperature control since the early morning, with no available refrigerator space for storage. Mr. Apetroaie received a fine of £1,300, was mandated to cover £3,000 in costs, and assessed a victim surcharge of £520. He confessed to several infractions, including neglecting to register his business with the council, operating without a food safety management system, lacking suitable controls to ensure food safety, failing to display allergen information, and not safeguarding food items from contamination. Councillor Jim Grant, who serves as Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Partnerships, commented: “This case was made even more serious because he failed to register his business with the Council. “This requirement is in place so we can advise business owners of the safety procedures and practices they need to follow in order to protect members of the public.”