Greengrocer Ishtiaq Ahmed has been ordered to pay fines and costs of more than £4,000 after he was caught selling bad fruit and veg.

Inspectors found bruised and rotting produce at the 43-year-old’s shop Garden of England in St Dunstan’s Street, Canterbury.

Mr Ahmed admitted nine breaches EU marketing rules for fresh produce quality and labelling.

Canterbury Magistrates Court heard that apples and lemons on sale at the shop “failed to meet the lowest marketable standards”.

The court fined him £1,305 for the offences and ordered him to pay prosecution costs of £2,871 plus a victim surcharge of £20.

Garden of England was visited by the Rural Payments Agency’s Horticultural Marketing Inspectorate in April.

Operations director Paul Caldwell said: “Prosecution is only used as a last resort and we will always try to get businesses complying with the marketing standards through advice and guidance and, where possible, with the full cooperation and support from the business itself.

“In this case, the prosecution followed a series of risk-based inspection visits to the shop where we offered advice and guidance on how to be compliant.

“Mr Ahmed failed to meet his statutory responsibility and failed to make sure the quality and labelling of the fresh produce he was offering on sale to consumers met the required minimum standards.”

The Horticultural Marketing Inspectorate is responsible for the enforcement of the EU marketing standards for fresh fruit, vegetables, salad crops, nuts and cultivated mushrooms in England and Wales wherever fresh produce is grown, imported, exported, bought or sold.

In September of last year Mr Ahmed was beaten up after he confronted a group of drunk men who were throwing his produce about.

He suffered a broken jaw and needed a plate in his face.

At Canterbury Crown Court Scott Seabrook, 36, from Bexley, admitted causing Mr Ahmed grievous harm without intent. He was jailed for a year.

Nigel Leader, 45, from Greenwich, had denied the same offence and was convicted by a jury after a trial. He was jailed for 18 months.