LOS ANGELES -- A television news report here last week which claimed deceptive or unsafe food-handling practices at southern California supermarkets created consternation among area retailers, causing one operator to consider legal options.
The report -- titled "Shop at Your Own Risk" -- was broadcast on KCBS-TV, the local CBS affiliate following what the station called a five-month undercover investigation.
The first segment revolved around allegedly deceptive practices in the meat departments at Top Valu Markets and Valu Plus Food Warehouse, both owned by K.V. Mart, Carson, Calif.; part two concentrated on alleged safety violations in fresh prepared foods at several major chains, including Albertson's, Lucky Stores, Ralphs Grocery Co., Vons Cos. and Whole Foods Market.
The claims were reminiscent of a 1992 report that questioned Food Lion's sanitary procedures. That case resulted in ongoing litigation.
Darioush Khaledi, chairman and chief executive officer of K.V. Mart, said his company is "evaluating the situation and seeing where the path leads us. We're not ruling out any options at this point."
In the first part of its report, KCBS said "researchers" for the station -- who were hired by K.V. Mart to work in the meat departments -- filmed examples of expired poultry and fish items being repackaged with a new "sell-by" date; discolored pork being dipped in a powdered marinade and put out for sale; chicken and pork being ground in the same grinder without any cleaning in between; discolored beef being trimmed and sold as fajitas, and flies on exposed meat products.
Ty Hitt, executive vice president and chief financial officer for K.V. Mart, said the two employees, a man and a woman, each worked for the company for 30 days last September and left voluntarily.
He implied the chain may have been set up by the report, "because both former employees gave us the same home address and we are the largest independent grocery chain in southern California that is non-union," he said.
Khaledi echoed that sentiment when he commented on allegations there were flies in the meat-department's backroom. "In my 22 years in the grocery business, I have never seen flies in a cold area like the meat department," he told SN. "Showing that on TV makes me believe there was some sort of conspiracy or setup."
In an interview with SN last week, Hitt rebuted each of the TV station's allegations:
On relabeling supposedly expired fish and poultry, Hitt said fresh product bleeds and frozen product thaws after a couple of days -- not an indication of spoilage, he noted -- and K.V. Mart simply pours off the liquid and repackages the product before putting it out for sale, without changing the "sell-by" date.
On covering discolored pork ribs with a marinade, Hitt said meat gets discolored from exposure to light, "and we happen to live in an area where consumers like marinated meats."
On grinding chicken and pork in the same grinder, Hitt said his company sells virtually no ground chicken unless a customer asks specifically for it, "and we've not been able to identify any occurrence of that ever happening, so what was shown on TV smacks of a setup. And if an employee did grind chicken without cleaning the grinder, then he was wrong."
On trimming discolored beef and selling it as fajitas, Hitt said that is standard industry practice. "Discolored meat is not unhealthy meat," he said.
In the second part of the report, which focused on alleged sanitation violations by several large chains here, the station cited examples of freshly prepared chicken salad, coleslaw and potato salad purchased at a variety of markets that allegedly contained more than the standard plate count of one million bacteria per gram.
According to the report, an analysis by an independent laboratory of products purchased at 15 local stores indicated that six of the 15 samples "tested in the danger zone" for bacteria count.
KCBS-TV also said it found samples of fresh potato salad, which by law must be maintained below 41 degrees, at 51 degrees, and roasted chicken, which must be kept above 140 degrees, at 120 degrees.
In a statement on KCBS' Web site, Vons Cos., Arcadia, Calif., a division of Safeway, Pleasanton, Calif., seemed to question the veracity of the results when it said, "A product with [a bacteria count of 180 million per gram] would clearly have been spoiled, with enough odor and discoloration to be readily apparent to our deli clerks and your reporter."
Lucky Stores South, Buena Park, Calif. -- a division of American Stores Co., Salt Lake City -- said,
"The standard plate count used to measure bacteria growth detects all bacteria growth, both good and bad. The standard of one million per gram is a useful indicator or tool; however, it does not necessarily indicate that products exceeding this measurement are unsafe for consumption."
