Popular Pittsburgh Snack Shop Chain Hit With Consumer Alert

PITTSBURGH, PA — The Allegheny County Health Department has issued a consumer alert for the food processing facility for the Pittsburgh Popcorn Company, which has nine locations in and around the city.

A Thursday inspection of the plant on Josephine Street on the South Side revealed numerous food products that had been gnawed by rodents, including powered cheese seasoning, white and milk chocolate morsels, tins used to store popped popcorn and packages of peanut butter inside of a walk-in cooler.

A live mouse was found running in a storage room. Numerous rodent droppings were found in the production room, packaging room, tin storage room, kettle room, inside and/or close to popcorn production equipment and on a stainless steel preparation table.

Two rodent repellent containers were found on top of a forklift, and an open bag of green bait blocks were being stored above food products on racks.

The Pittsburgh Popcorn Company has locations in the Strip District, Oakland Ross Park Mall, Monroeville Mall, the Mall at Robinson, South Hills Village, Mt. Lebanon and Greensburg.

A facility with a consumer alert placard is allowed to operate for a temporary period not exceeding 10 days. Another inspection is conducted either prior to the expiration of the temporary period upon request of the eatery owner or on the tenth day.

See the entire inspection report here.