Health inspectors find meat drying on store's roof

UNION COUNTY, N.C.,None — Customers at a local grocery store are appalled after health inspectors find strips of meat sun-drying on the roof of the store.

A worker on a nearby roof first saw the shed with the drying strips of meat on the roof of Compare Foods on Skyway Drive in Monroe Wednesday morning.

The worker took a video of the meat and then contacted Eyewitness News and local health officials.

An Eyewitness News crew asked Union County Health Department Director Phillip Tarte if he believed the employees had plans to sell the dried meat in the store.

"I think that's a strong possibility, but North Carolina law prohibits that," Tarte said.

Health inspectors ordered the workers at the store to destroy and discard the meat, but say the store will not be fined because employees cooperated.

Eyewitness News combed through Health Department records and discovered multiple serious violations in the past three inspections of the store's meat market.

On Oct. 25, an inspector saw a deli worker rinse a dirty knife without soap and return it to a storage area. The inspector also noted a worker taking out the trash and then returning to work with meat/fish without washing their hands. The report also said raw and cooked seafood was stored in a refrigerator without a proper barrier.

In June of this year, an inspector also found strips of drying beef - this time, on a cart hidden in a closet in the store's produce section. The inspector ordered the meat to be destroyed and discarded. The report also noted "old meat built up" on the meat grinder and required workers to clean it.

In February, another inspection noted meat trays and knives were stored without being washed.

However, Compare Foods still maintains an A rating of above 90 points with the Health Department.

Compare Foods released a statement Wednesday afternoon that said, "Our company was not aware that this was taking place in one of our stores. Compare Foods instructs all of its operators and managers to fully comply with ALL health department and sanitary regulations and we pride ourselves on our health records and cleanliness. As soon as this situation was brought to our attention, all the affected product was destroyed and discarded and measures have been taken to ensure that this does not happen again in any of our locations."

WSOC