LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Health inspection reports for three Louisville Kroger stores show mouse nets, droppings and traps found in aisles frequented by customers.
The Louisville Metro Health Department said nine complaints about Kroger stores have come in the last two weeks.
"In the last year, as of July 1st, 2024, we had 57 Kroger complaints," said Samantha Gootee, manager of the health department's food safety team. "Those could be anything from bathrooms to dirty floors. Out of the 57, 21 had to do with actual rodents or seeing droppings."
In the report for the Holiday Manor Kroger, store officials told the health department June 20 that crews removed three nests and caught 26 rodents in three aisles. Products were then removed.
In the follow-up visit Monday, the health department didn't find any evidence of rodents.
For the Goss Avenue store, the report says two days after the store reopened after a rodent infestation, more droppings were found. On June 18, the health department says rodent droppings were found in the sushi area, on the counter, floor and inside a box of sealed vinegar.
Inspectors said they also found droppings on the shelves in the bread and pasta aisles and a dead mouse in a trap in the area where marshmallows are stored.
Metro Public Health and Wellness are investigating after complaints at several Kroger locations.
"They also had basically an old refrigerated trench — is what they called it — that wasn't opened up to the outside and wasn't capped properly," Gootee said. "So they concreted that trench in because they did find evidence of a nest down there, and that's how they think they got into the building. They called it a trench."
For the LaGrange Road Kroger location, the report says droppings were found on shelves on two dates in May.
The report says Kroger told the health department the Kroger warehouse wasn't having a mouse problem, so mice were not coming from food deliveries.
At La Grange Road, openings have been sealed.Â
The health department said affected Kroger stores will get weekly inspections.
"We will check for damaged product because if we are seeing a bunch of product chewed through or seeing a bunch of mice on dead traps or seeing live mice running around the store, then that tells us there is a bigger issue going on, than just a few droppings," Gootee said.
When asked for a comment about the investigation reports, Kroger referred to its original statement,
"At Kroger, one of our top priorities is to provide our customers with a clean and fresh shopping experience. As soon as we were made aware of this incident, we immediately initiated additional cleaning and sanitization protocols at this store and have redoubled our efforts with pest control specialists. We are also working in conjunction with the Louisville Metro Health Department to fully resolve the issue and ensure our store meets the highest standards of cleanliness and safety."
You can read the full reports for the three stores below:
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