A CONFECTIONERY company responsible for polluting a stretch of the Leeds and Liverpool canal with sugar, fats and chocolate, lost an appeal against a £4,000 fine.

Judge Peter Smith said the fine imposed on the Glisten Co Ltd, of Blackburn, was right and dismissed the appeal at Preston Crown Court, which heard the pollution resulted from a weakness in a tank.

Matthew Cottrell, for the environmental agency, said 3,000 fish were killed due to the spillage, which spanned three kilometres.

James Prowse, for the company, said it had been an accident and they had done everything in their power to resolve the matter when it first occurred. The firm had invested £30,000 on new technology following the spillage.

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