ILLEGAL sheep carcasses and offal classed as unfit for human consumption have been seized from a food store.

Environmental health officers visited Surma Foods, in Gladstone Street, Darlington, last Wednesday, as part of a routine inspection.

They removed the carcasses and offal, which were destroyed after an Order for Condemnation of the food was granted at Bishop Auckland Magistrates' Court under the Food Safety Act 1990.

The carcasses and offal did not include the mandatory health mark to show the animals had been slaughtered and processed in approved premises.

It is the first time meat of this standard has been found in the Darlington borough.

Councillor Stephen Harker, Darlington Borough Council's cabinet member for consumer and environmental services, said: "The council's enforcement officers are committed to working with all businesses to protect the public and any breaches of standards will be treated very seriously."

The council said its investigations into the shop were continuing.

Last night, the manager of Surma Foods was not available at the store for comment.

However, his assistant, Anayath Hassan, said the meat had been bought from a new supplier.

He said the environmental health officers had shown staff the difference between marked and unmarked meat, and they would only supply legal meat in future.

Mr Hassan said: "The rest of the food in here is fine. People don't have to have any worries."

He said the shop would no longer use the supplier, which he declined to name but from which they had only bought meat on about five occasions.

Mr Hassan said: "The meat looked like it was freshly killed.

"The meat did not include that mark, so somebody probably sold it without a licence. We did not realise before."