A food manufacturer has been fined £120,000 after workers were exposed to dangerous levels of flour dust and unsafe manual handling practices at its factory in Buckingham.
Puratos Limited admitted breaching health and safety legislation following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which found employees were at risk of developing occupational asthma and suffering musculoskeletal injuries.
Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court heard that an HSE inspection carried out on 3rd December 2024 identified a series of failings at the company’s site. Inspectors found dust escaping from machinery through leaks, employees using compressed air to blow flour dust from equipment and dry sweeping with brushes and brooms – practices that can release harmful dust into the air.
A workplace dust monitoring report completed later that month confirmed workers had been exposed to inhalable dust concentrations above the legal workplace exposure limits set by the HSE.
Occupational asthma is a serious, lifelong condition that can be caused by repeated exposure to flour dust, one of the most common causes of work-related respiratory disease in the food manufacturing industry.
The dangers of inhaled four dust have long been known. In 1700, Bernardino Ramazzini documented respiratory diseases among millers and bakers caused by constant exposure to flour dust.
This prosecution comes as the HSE continues a nationwide programme of inspections at large bakeries across Great Britain, launched in January 2026. The initiative is focused on ensuring employers are taking adequate steps to protect workers from the dangers posed by flour dust and other airborne baking ingredients.
The court heard that the Buckingham site had previously come to the attention of regulators. During an inspection in 2021, the HSE had already taken enforcement action over concerns relating to employees’ exposure to flour dust and manual handling risks.
Puratos Limited, based at Buckingham Industrial Park, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
The company was fined £120,000 and ordered to pay £6,270 in costs at Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court on 17th July 2026.
Following the hearing, HSE inspector Emma Page said: ‘Too many workers in bakeries are suffering from unnecessary exposure to dusty ingredients, including flour. When employers prevent exposure, the risk of occupational asthma is removed.
‘In the food and drink industries, around one-third of reportable injuries are acute injuries caused by handling and lifting. Employers must ensure they are properly protecting workers from the dangers of dusty ingredients and the manual handling of heavy materials.’
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