Mouse found in food container at 'filthy' takeaway

A Chinese takeaway has been fined after environmental health inspectors found a live mouse inside a food container.

Food was being prepared in "filthy" conditions at Good Wok in Gloucester, according to inspectors, who found mouse droppings and dead rodents at the site.

Good Wok Mings Ltd and the takeaway's owner and manager Lili Wang, 44, admitted seven charges relating to food safety breachesand were told to pay £14,918 and £2,120 respectively in fines and court costs at Cheltenham Magistrates' Court on Monday.

The takeaway was shut down after the inspection but has since reopened. It was given a food hygiene rating of three in August 2025, which means it is generally satisfactory.

"This is one of the worst cases our inspectors have dealt with and showed a blatant disregard for the safety of customers," said Sebastian Field, cabinet member for environment at Gloucester City Council.

The council said the kitchen of the Bristol Road takeaway was dirty and Wang, who lived above the premises, was not following basic food hygiene practices.

Inspectors found utensils stored next to mice droppings and food storage bags that had been nibbled by rodents.

Wang admitted the following charges:

• Failure to put adequate procedures in place to control pests
• Failure to ensure the premises was kept clean and in good repair
• Failure to ensure that, in rooms where food is prepared, treated or processed, the design and layout permitted good food hygiene practices
• Failure to protect food against contamination to render it unfit for human consumption, injurious to health or contamination in such a way that it would be unreasonable to expect it be consumed in that state
• Failure to keep raw materials and all ingredients stored in a food business in appropriate conditions designed to prevent harmful deterioration and protect them from contamination
• Failure to have adequate natural or artificial lighting

"We will always go out of our way to help business owners to operate safely," Field said. "But in the case Ms Wang was simply not dealing with the issue and serving customers in filthy conditions that were frankly dangerous."

He added: "Mice can spread disease and viruses that, in the worst-case scenario, can kill people."

Good Wok was allowed to reopen after the infestation had been dealt with and there it was deemed there was no longer an imminent risk to public health, the council added.

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