Food manufacturer 2 Sisters Food Group has been fined £1.4m after a worker was seriously injured while unblocking a machine on the poultry slaughter line.
The employee was attempting to clear a blockage on a conveying system at 2 Sister's Foxhills Industrial Estate site in Scunthorpe, when he was struck by a large metal stillage.
As a result, the man's body was crushed at chest height against the end of the unit, and he sustained multiple injuries including several fractured ribs, fractures to his back and a punctured lung.
The incident happened on 6 September 2012. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company had failed to identify deficiencies in the guarding on the machine, and the clearing of blockages was usually carried out while the machine was still in operation.
The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and has been fined £1.4 million with £38,000 in costs.
Speaking after the hearing at Doncaster Magistrates’ Court, HSE inspector Kirsty Storer said: “The employee’s life-threatening injuries could easily have been prevented had the company identified the guarding deficiencies and put in place simple measures to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery.
“This should serve as a lesson to others in the food processing industry about the importance of effectively guarding their machinery to stop others being similarly injured.”
In February this year, 2 Sisters were fined over £270,000 after two workers had their thumb and finger severed in machinery at the company's poultry site in Norfolk.
