Irish crackdown on catering WEEE

Powers to prosecute firms under new electrical waste laws have been used for the first time to crackdown on the catering industry.


The Irish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has only used the powers twice before and this week saw the successful prosecution of a catering firm – Advanced Bar and Catering Services.

The firm, of Ballymount, Dublin, pleaded guilty to seven charges brought under the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations.

Also known as ABC services the firm is a supplier of electrical cooking equipment to the catering industry and operates throughout Ireland.

The case, heard at Dublin Metropolitan District Court on 20 July, heard the firm placed electrical goods on the market when it was not registered to do so.

Advanced Bar and Catering Services also failed to join the producer registration body and did not declare the quantities, by weight or number of units, of goods it sold or intended to sell.

The company was fined a total of €3,500 for the seven charges and ordered to pay costs totalling €4,500.

The EPA’s programme manager, Dr Gerry Byrne, he said: “This is the first such prosecution of a company in the catering equipment sector.

“This should send out a clear message to other companies with producer obligations that failure to meet their obligations will not be tolerated.

“Given the current economic challenges facing business, it is more important than ever that compliant companies are not put at a competitive disadvantage by others who flout the law.”

Luke Walsh

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