At the Kroger on Goss Avenue, a pale gray curtain envelops the first three aisles, blocking shoppers from their choices of breads, pastas, tortillas and salad dressings.
In front of the stained, dull veil, a sign reads: “At Kroger, your health and safety are our top priorities. We are working closely with environmental health experts, cleaning teams, and the Louisville Metro Health Department to address a sanitation issue and ensure this area meets the highest standards of cleanliness.”
Records obtained by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting reveal that shoppers filed complaints with Louisville’s Department of Public Health and Wellness about rodents in the store as far back as January. Customers described seeing rodent droppings on store shelves, holes in bread and pasta packaging, and pieces of products that appeared to be chewed off.
Shopper Lashawnda Anderson said Thursday at the store that she was wondering why the curtain surrounded the front three aisles. Her jaw dropped when she found out why.
“[January] is a very long time to be not taking care of the situation, though,” Anderson said. “It's June. Y'all had more than six months to get it together. That's kind of odd.”
She said it’s unfair that Kroger has not told its customers about the rodent infestation.
“This store was great when it first opened,” said shopper Milton Dickerson. “Now, it’s really, really bad. It’s terrible.”
Dickerson — a Jeffersonville resident — was helping his mother with her routine grocery run. When he learned about the rodent problem, he stepped back in shock.
“[My mom] was talking about going to Walmart, so she might want to lean towards Walmart,” Dickerson said.
Louisville’s Department of Public Health and Wellness spokesperson Kathy Turner said Kroger removed all the products from the “affected aisles” earlier this week. The store was also ordered to break down the shelving to expose where rodents may be hiding.
“We will have inspectors back at the store [Thursday] to observe if progress has been made,” Turner said.
The Germantown Kroger worked with the sanitation management company Ecolab to handle the rodent infestation in April, records show. According to a food safety report from April 11, the Minnesota-based company had come by three times that week “to set traps and advise on mitigation strategies.”
At the time, the health department reported it did not see any live rodents, but did find two dead ones in traps underneath the shelves. The department also advised Kroger managers to seal off holes at the floral department kiosk and the cheese kiosk that sits along the affected shelves.
Shopper Red Wilcox said he still plans to get his groceries from this Kroger. However, he said he will avoid shopping for bread, pasta or salad dressing for now.
“I mean, every grocery store is going to have a problem,” he said. “I usually shop at Sam’s but Sam’s is expensive.”
LPM News reached out to Kroger’s corporate office and has not heard back.
Jacob Ryan contributed reporting.
