CAFETERIAS and food outlets in Croke Park were filthy, Dublin District Court was told yesterday. One had become infested with mice, which left droppings beside, breadboards used for hot dog rolls.
A separate prosecution by the Eastern Health Board against the GAA is due to come up on January 23rd.
Yesterday, in an Eastern Health Board prosecution against Mr Michael Lawlor, trading as Concessions Ireland Ltd, which operates the food outlets, more than 30 infringements of the food hygiene regulations were outlined.
Ms Anne Marie Part, a health inspector, said a shop operated by the company at the Canal End was inspected on September 15th last, the day of the Mayo and Meath All Ireland final.
The shop had become so infested with mice that she could see droppings on a breadboard beside hot dog rolls intended for human consumption. She found rodent traps on a shelf beside tongs and gloves used to touch food. Hot dogs were not being maintained at the proper temperature and sandwiches were not being stored in refrigerators.
During her investigation into the Canal End shop, a fast food outlet, and the main cafeteria under the Hogan Stand, the inspector found none was being kept clean.
Staff had no access to a private toilet and there was no hot water available for cleaning utensils. The tops of freezers were being used as chopping boards in one shop. She described smelling a "foul odour" after opening a disused freezer.
Staff were storing their coats and bags beside fresh food. The walls and floors were filthy and flies were gathering around black sacks used as refuse bins. Dirty mops and buckets were also stored beside the food.
Ms Part said she visited the three premises on July 28th and September 15th last. She said: "Separate cloths should be used for the serving and preparation area. This was not the case".
Mr Lawlor pleaded guilty to all summonses, which he said related directly to operational matters. He said through his solicitors he was pleading not guilty to matters relating to the structure of the premises, which he said were outside his control.
From the witness stand, Mr, Lawlor said a lot of the problems with the outlets were structural and he had no control over this. He said he had recently received assurances from the GAA that these would be rectified.
He also told the court he had hired a rodent clearing company which made eight visits to his premises and had assured him flied problem had been abated.
"It was difficult to carry out any work during the time of the inspections, as this was the busiest time of year in the GAA calendar," he said.
Judge Joseph Mangan said he would be convicting the company on all summonses before him. He adjourned the case until this morning for final judgments.