PITTSBURGH — A local grocery store is pledging to do “whatever possible to ensure a quality shopping experience” on the heels of receiving additional health violations.
Late last month, the Allegheny County Health Department issued another consumer alert for Lawrenceville’s Shop ‘N Save, located off of Butler Street. The inspection report accused the grocery store of several “pest management” violations, noting that droppings were discovered on shelves, floors and around bags of flour that had been chewed by pests.
The inspection further noted that a “freshly dead mouse” was found on the glue board behind the bread.
A reinspection two days later on Oct. 27 indicated that many of those issues had been corrected, noting only that droppings were observed within a broken walk-in cooler.
“Although there were violations documented during the 10/27 inspection, the food facility operator established satisfactory compliance with the violations that were related to the 10/25 consumer alert. The Food Safety Program will be returning within 30 days of the removal of the consumer alert for a standard follow-up inspection to assess compliance. The Food Safety Program is also considering the facility’s inspection history to determine the most appropriate course of action to secure long-term compliance,” said Amanda Mator, Food Safety Program Manager with the Allegheny County Health Department.
October’s consumer alert came nearly a month after a previous alert Channel 11 told you about.
>>> Lawrenceville grocery store cited by health department for pest control, food contamination
In total, the store has faced four alerts since September 2022. County records indicate that only one other major grocery store within the county was subject to alerts during the same time frame.
A statement from the Lawrenceville store’s owner reads: “My family and team has and continues to follow all recommendations from the health department. This store is our livelihood and a destination we know that this community relies upon. We are pleased to report that we are currently operating under a green sticker and we have heard from shoppers that they are very happy with the updates that we have been making. Pertaining to the Oct. 25 alert, we remedied the issue in less than 24 hours. We will continue to ensure sanitary measures at the store and remain dedicated to the health and safety of our customers. We assure you we are doing whatever possible to ensure a quality shopping experience. We love being a part of this community and are dedicated to serving those that shop with us.”
Channel 11 visited the store on Tuesday. Longtime customer Denise Lambert told us that she did observe a mouse within the store about two years ago, but otherwise “never had an issue.” She continued to shop at the store and told us “They’re very particular on cleanliness around here, even for cashiers, people working in the bakery, the deli, stuff like that.”
Another customer, who opted out of sharing her name, told us that she visits the store for its convenient location but buys only canned items or products that mice wouldn’t enter. She told us that she’s observed items in the past that appeared to have been tampered with by rodents.
“They have a bad problem,” she said. “I had some spaghetti, and the box had a hole in it, so I am not shopping here until they have it fixed.” She added having observed bread that also looked like mice had entered it.
According to county records, the store is set to be inspected again this month.
“The Food Safety Program has also issued a number of consumer alerts and provided consultation to the food facility owner and managers to assist in them achieving long-term compliance. Failure to achieve long-term compliance may result in additional enforcement actions, including but not limited to, a pre-suspension hearing, monetary penalties, and closure,” said Mator.
According to Mator, the county does not close facilities following a specific number of consumer alerts, but rather “considers the gravity, scope and duration of food safety violations when issuing closure orders.”
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