ASDA Slapped with £640,000 Fine After Selling Out-of-Date Food in Cardiff

ASDA has been fined £640,000 after Trading Standards found expired food for sale at two of its Welsh stores. The breaches were uncovered in multiple inspections during 2024 at the Leckwith and Pentwyn branches in Cardiff.

Food safety officers discovered a total of 115 out-of-date items. During a visit inspection to Leckwith on 17th January, including five tubs of spicy mayo dip that were seven days past the sell-by date.

A later inspection on May 8th uncovered a further six items. Meanwhile, at the Pentwyn store in the Cardiff Gate retail park, officers found 25 outdated items on March 25th, and a month later, another 48, some of which were 12 days past their use-by date.

The retailer faced four charges, and Judge Charlotte Murphy handed down a substantial penalty, along with costs totalling £15,115 and a £ 2,000 surcharge.

An ASDA spokesperson said the incident occurred under an outdated date-code checking system, which has since been replaced. "We regret that out-of-date food was found on sale at two of our Cardiff stores last year and accept that our usual high standards were not upheld," the statement reads.

The new system, introduced in late 2024, mandates daily checks on short-life items and twice-weekly checks on long-life products.

Norma Mackie, from regulatory services at Cardiff Council, praised the fine, saying, "Consumers should be confident that the food on sale at stores is safe to eat. It is essential that robust systems are in place to prevent the sale of food past its use-by date."

This isn't ASDA's first such fine this year. In April, the supermarket was fined over £400,000 after selling expired food products at two Cornwall stores.