Emmanuel Ray, a local resident and member of the Food Court Action Group, said he had seen “raw meat on a barrel with rats running around it”.
“It’s disgusting,” he said.
He also alleged that traders had used garages in his building to relieve themselves.
“They have no running water, no sanitation facilities. So our garage became their toilet,” he said.
However, traders at the market strongly rejected the claims.
Abdullah, who runs a stall at the food court, said officers regularly inspected the site.
“They have inspectors here every day in the morning, in the evening when we’re shutting down, watching us, watching the drains, making sure that everything’s done correctly. Otherwise we will be penalised,” he said.
When shown photographs of rats and rubbish in the area, he added: “That’s east London for you. There’s rats all over London. How are we stopping rats? Are we [the] Pied Piper?”