Cherry Blossom Sushi Bars were established in 2007 and the company now has 20 stores in different locations in Adelaide. According to the company’s Web site, each Cherry Blossom Sushi Bar outlet is “supplemented with hot Japanese-Style meals serviced from a central kitchen delivered by temperature-controlled vehicles.”

According to International Business Times – Australia, the company also assures patrons that the “highest level of commitment to food health and safety is our first priority. Cherry Blossom is HACCP Accredited and operates a rigorous training and audit program to ensure not just compliance, but a culture of the highest standards of hygiene. As well as daily attention to food hygiene within our own premises, our experience of health and safety is taken off-site when we participate in off-location special events”

Uh-huh.

However a report from ABC News said that the Cherry Blossom Sushi Bar outlet in Gorge Road, Newton, had pleaded guilty to 40 breaches of Food Safety Standards code of Australia.

Cherry Blossom committed the food hygiene breaches from August of 2012 until February 2013 when it fall short of maintaining its sushi rolls storage under recommended temperature control, hence, failing to avoid raw sushi ingredients from being contaminated.

As for the store premises per se, officials saw that there were accumulated dirt from food scraps and that kitchen utensils were old, dirty and rusty.

Consequently, Li and Ming Pty Ltd, owner of Cherry Blossom Sushi Bar, pleaded guilty at Holden Hill Magistrate Court to 44 counts of failing to comply with requirements of the Food Safety Standards code. The company now has to wait for its sentence pending until October.