Moy Park has been fined £200,000 after admitting breach of health and safety regulations after a worker was injured.
An engineer was testing cutting machinery at the plant at Anwick, Sleaford, when the accident happened.
Alexander Stein, prosecuting for the health and safety executive, told Lincoln Crown Court that the incident occurred in January 2015 when engineer Barry Tye was carrying out checks on the tail cutting machine on the factory’s KFC production line.
Stein said: “Because the machine wasn’t working properly he ran his finger over the blade to assess the blade.”
In addition to being fined the company was ordered to pay £11,924 prosecution costs.
Mark Watson, in mitigation, said the company takes safety seriously and has won awards from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.
“This is a company that takes its responsibilities seriously in relation to health and safety, food safety and other regulations,” said Watson.