Director fined $2,000 over safety breaches at dessert factory

A director at a dessert manufacturer in Melbourne has been fined $2,000 for failing to keep the factory’s gas installation safe and in a proper state of repair.

Goutham Modem was responsible for the running of the Sweet India factory at Hoppers Crossing but repeatedly failed to comply with an improvement notice issued for the premises.

The Werribee Magistrates Court heard an inspector from Energy Safe Victoria issued the notice in January 2023 after visiting the factory and identifying a range of issues that didn’t meet gas safety standards or legal requirements.

Over the next few months the inspector made several follow-up visits, each time finding several issues had not been rectified.

In sentencing Magistrate Serratore said Mr Modem had several opportunities to comply with the improvement notice but did nothing about it.  

He said the director would have received a much higher fine had he not entered an early guilty plea to breaching the Gas Safety Act.  

His Honour also noted community safety was the primary reason for the legislation and that the sentence would send a message that this type of offending was not acceptable.

Energy Safe. Always.

Media contact: Nicole Butler 0477 572 378 l media@energysafe.vic.gov.au