A NATIONAL store chain faces a £5,300 court bill for a catalogue of food safety and pricing offences at one of its York stores.

Spar Stores blamed social problems in The Groves and management incompetence for the misleading prices, lack of prices, and food on display after its sell-by date, at its Lowther Street shop.

Liz Levett, prosecuting for York's food safety unit, told the city's magistrates that its inspectors found three types of sweets priced at £1.29, but customers paid 20p more at the till for them, and more than 200 items without any prices at all, on January 12.

The sweets involved were packs of Rowntree Fruit Pastilles, Nestl Smarties and Nestl Milk Bar Buttons.

The shelf ticket of a Spar Spring Fresh Fabric Conditioner was 49p, but it was actually sold at 30p more.

The inspectors also found a Pork Farms peppered steak slice and a Pork Farms scotch egg for sale which should have been removed from the display the previous day.

Alfred Jones (Warrington) Ltd, trading as Spar Stores, of Honiton Way, Warrington, pleaded guilty to two offences of offering food for sale past its sell-by date, four misleading price offences, and five offences of displaying items without prices.

The company was fined £3,500 and ordered to pay £1,811.20 prosecution costs. It had a previous caution for offering food past its sell-by date. Its executives said nothing as they left court.

But its barrister, Peter Atherton, told the magistrates: "Lowther Street is a difficult area in terms of social problems, and consequently the company has found much difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff of high calibre."

He outlined months of personnel difficulties and senior management attempts to resolve them, including a failed attempt to recruit staff, personality issues, and the sacking of the then manager in December for lack of commitment.

"In the case of misleading prices, this offence is manifestly incompetence on the part of local management," he said.

Earlier he had said that the shop's till had not been updated to handle special offers on the sweets and fabric conditioner. There had not been a deliberate attempt to deceive.

He said the shop was now under the control of a manager who had proved his worth elsewhere. The barrister said that when inspectors returned to the store, on January 22, they were "impressed" with the steps the store had taken over its display.

Updated: 10:06 Friday, May 28, 2004