Bean Me Up Cafe in Kaikōura owner Sharon Rayner jailed for selling food without proper registration

A controversial cafe owner who refused to put up Covid scan codes during lockdown has been jailed for two months after selling food without proper registration.

Sharon Rayner, owner-operator of the Bean Me Up Cafe in Kaikōura, was sentenced on Friday on two charges under the Food Act 2014 brought by the Kaikōura District Council.

The charges were knowingly selling non-complying food and failing to comply with a notice of direction under the Food Act 2014.

News of the conviction was uploaded to the council’s Facebook page, with some locals accusing the council of deliberately outing Rayner. Video uploaded to Facebook by Rayner’s supporters also showed her being led into court from a police van.

The statement read:

“The District Court had previously found Ms Rayner guilty of both charges at a hearing that she did not attend. The District Court has now sentenced Ms Rayner to two months imprisonment. The maximum penalty for the charges is two years imprisonment and a $100,000 fine. The judge stated that Ms Rayner’s refusal to pay previous fines in relation to the case had been taken into consideration in the sentencing decision.”

Kaikōura District Council CEO Will Doughty said it was regrettable that the council had no other option but to prosecute Rayner.

“The Court’s ruling is sadly the inevitable conclusion of a year-long process in which Ms Rayner has been provided with numerous opportunities by Kaikōura District Council to comply with the Food Act, as all other food sellers do, and avoid prosecution – opportunities which she chose not to take.”

In background to the court’s decision, the council said Rayner had previously complied with food safety regulations, “but in 2021 requested that her valid food registration be withdrawn. She then continued to sell food to the public without food registration measures in place at her cafe Bean Me Up, and has continued to do so right until the day of sentencing.”

“For Kaikōura District Council not to seek prosecution of a food operator who has been given every opportunity to comply with the Food Act by Council and the Court would have been a dereliction of Council’s duties to the public under the safety provisions of the Food Act. It would also have been unfair to other businesses who meet their food safety requirements under the Food Act – indeed many in the same street.”

In a Facebook post, Rayner’s daughter Holly Timms condemned the actions of the council.

“My mum, Sharon Gertrude, has been sent to prison for two months. Just because she does not have a ‘registered’ plan with the council, does not mean that she doesn’t follow safe food & hygiene practices. Is KKDC going to jail market stall holders on a Saturday for not having a food control plan?”

“KKDC have gone out of their way to post this on a Sunday to slander her name. Why have you not posted about the other restaurant in court on Friday? How can you sleep at night, knowing you’ve sent a mother, a daughter, a friend & community advocate to JAIL right before Christmas - knowing damn well there has been no crime committed.”

Rayner was fined $300 in April after failing to follow WorkSafe orders to display a Covid-19 QR code in 2021.

- More to come.