Directors of a company that was banned from Machynlleth market after Powys environmental health officers found food being sold despite being years out of date have been banned from standing as company directors after further court cases in Pembrokeshire and Neath Port Talbot.

The three company directors at family-run Marley Cwmgors Food Ltd - 59-year-old Robert John Croft Hodges, his wife Judith Elizabeth Hodges, 57, and their son, aged 29, also called Robert John Croft Hodges - admitted a string of charges including selling out-of-date food as well as failures in food labelling and traceability of food.

The latest charges brought by trading standards in both Pembrokeshire and Neath Port Talbot were similar to charges brought by Powys County Council in June last year which saw the company fined £6,000.

Now the three family members have been banned from serving as company directors in food businesses, with Robert Hodges senior and his wife being given 18-month community orders, and Robert Hodges junior being given a suspended prison sentence.

The case brought by Powys council saw the company plead guilty to selling food significantly past the use-by date, as well as storing mouldy food alongside food the company was looking to sell at markets across Wales.

As a result of the conviction, Machynlleth Town Council, which operates the town’s successful market, took the decision to ban the company from operating a stall at the market over concerns that it could affect the reputation of the market.

The ban was put in place pending the outcome of court proceedings.

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