No 'critical' food safety issues discovered

A government inspection of Dunedin Pizza Hut stores accused of hygiene issues found no "critical" food safety risks, but officials were continuing to investigate claims.

A former worker says owners had ample time to fix problems before inspectors arrived.

Three employees have resigned from the two Dunedin chain locations in the past three weeks because of alleged food safety issues.

They included the franchise owner serving expired brownies which had been thrown in a skip, and changing expiry dates on chicken.

The Ministry for Primary Industries said yesterday, after a store visit on Wednesday, no evidence of any critical food safety risks was found.

Ministry food compliance manager Melinda Sando said this meant it did not find anything that would cause immediate concerns for food safety.

The inspection found various low-level cleaning and maintenance issues needing addressing.

It did not find evidence of fraudulent date marking.

"However, we are continuing to investigate the serious allegations made."

Restaurant Brands general manager of marketing Geraldine Oldham said it was working with the ministry in its investigation.

Former employee Hayley Bevin said she had many photos proving the allegations.

She posted about the issues on social media at the weekend, as it was the quickest way to warn people.

However, this also gave owners plenty of time to prepare for an inspection, she said.

At the weekend, she also complained to the Dunedin City Council, which forwarded concerns to the ministry.