A burger establishment in Oxford has been given a zero food hygiene rating after officials uncovered a dead animal and waste matter on the site, leading to its prompt shutdown.

Health investigators additionally found a dead mouse behind a refrigeration unit at Peppers Burgers on Walton Street in Jericho.

Ryan Cobb, the principal lead officer for food safety at Oxford City Council, indicated that the burger venue presented an imminent risk to health based on what inspectors found.

The food business, previously described as a rite of passage for newcomers to Oxford, stopped trading on Tuesday, March 31.

In remarks, Mr Cobb noted that signs of a significant mouse issue were evident throughout the premises. A dead mouse was discovered behind a chest freezer in food storage zones near the kitchen. Large amounts of mouse droppings were observed in the kitchen, rear food storage areas, and in the restroom lobby. Gaps large enough for rodents to pass through were visible around pipes, baseboards, and through the kitchen floor leading to the basement. In the kitchen, mouse droppings were located beneath sinks, close to the pizza oven, and on surfaces used for storing paper items intended for wrapping high-risk ready-to-eat products. In the food storage rooms, extensive mouse waste was found beneath equipment and refrigeration units. The people operating the venue could not provide any food safety management systems, paperwork, or evidence of planned pest control measures, including a professional pest control contract.

Peppers Burgers has now received a zero-out-of-five star food hygiene rating following the mouse infestation findings.

Oxford City Council’s Environmental Health department has now published the lowest possible rating from the March 31 inspection.

The Food Standards Agency website states that urgent improvement is required at this establishment.

During a previous inspection in 2024, officials visited Peppers Burgers and awarded it just one out of five for overall standards, a rating described as requiring major improvement.

Inspectors noted at that time that significant improvements to procedures or monitoring systems were needed to ensure that food sold or served was safe to eat.

The takeaway must also demonstrate that staff have adequate knowledge regarding food safety, and the food safety officer must be satisfied that appropriate standards would be maintained going forward.

Mr Cobb added that no food-safe sanitising or disinfecting products were available on the premises to eliminate harmful bacteria carried by mice. There is an immediate risk of contamination affecting food items, packaging materials, food contact surfaces, and kitchen equipment, which could reasonably cause foodborne illness and spread numerous other infectious diseases.