Accident at work news
18/08/2011

Pork factory fined over work accident

One of the biggest producers of pork products has been fined by Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following a work accident which left an employee with serious personal injuries.

The 60-year-old employee, from Branston in Lincolnshire, had been working on the factory production line to add seasoning to the pork mix when he attempted to remove a piece of plastic he had spotted in the mixing bowl. However, in doing so, his hand was pulled into the machine and he lost both his index and middle finger and severed his ring finger.

As well as losing two fingers the employee also suffered loss of nerve endings and had to endure several operations and ten months off work. When he did return to work he was unable to carry out the same duties as before the accident.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation into the incident revealed that the mixing machine had been unguarded and did not have the required electronic gate which prevented the machine from running during the seasoning process.

Grantham Magistrates Court heard the company plead guilty to breaching health and safety regulations and fined it £16,000 and ordered it to pay £4,076 in costs.

Speaking about the work accident after the hearing, a HSE inspector said, "This incident was entirely foreseeable and easily preventable."