A PORTBURY trader must move from his current pitch after the council refused to renew his licence due to health and safety breaches.

David Buljoo has been serving hot and cold food as D&C Snacks on a lay-by near Portbury, but his licence has not been renewed after serious breaches of food and safety regulations were found by an officer from North Somerset Council.

Mould was found in a container stored in a cool box alongside eggs and butter, while food was kept at incorrect temperatures.

A hearing of the council’s planning and regulatory licensing sub-committee heard Mr Buljoo had also been found to have repeatedly breached the terms of his licence from the council,

Between November 2009 and February 2011 three complaints were received that he was trading outside of the area permitted and had damaged the road by putting metal stakes up to cordon off an area to park in.

Mr Buljoo’s wife Christine, who represented him at the hearing, said he had done this as cars were often parked in the layby all day, blocking his customers from parking to buy food.

Marc Hollier, the council’s principal food and safety officer, said he had made an inspection of D&C Snacks on July 20 this year, in which he raised nine issues, including that of the mouldy container, and issued an improvement notice to Mr Buljoo.

He also found cold food being stored at 11-12�C – three degrees more than it should be – and hot food being stored in temperatures of 53�C, ten degrees colder than regulations state.

Mr Hollier added that on a further site visit on August 10 all parts of the order had been complied with.

Mrs Buljoo said the hygiene breaches had happened when her husband was suffering from depression, and that another site in Harbour Road, Portishead had been earmarked.

He added: “I’ve being doing this for 24 years, I’ve put my hands up and admitted them, and this will never happen again.”

But the committee deemed the breaches to be of a ‘serious’ nature, and Mr Buljoo must now leave the site when his licence expires in November.