ONTARIO: West-end supermarket may stay closed for weeks

08.nov.08
The Kingston Whig Standard
Ann Lukits

Health inspectors say it could be weeks before the rat infestation at Herbie's Food
and Drug Warehouse is brought under control and the west-end grocery reopens.
Peter Moccio, associate director of environmental health at Kingston Frontenac
Lennox and Addington Public Health, said yesterday the Herbie's infestation was an
especially large one so "it's going to take awhile."
The supermarket portion of Herbie's has been closed since Oct. 23, when inspectors
ordered the company to remove all food from the premises and hire a pest control
company to rodent-proof the building.
The firm carrying out that job is Abell Pest Control of Kingston.
"You take away their means of entrance, you take away moisture, you take away their
food source, then you bait and trap, and you can get rid of them," Moccio said.
"If you've got a pretty gross infestation, it's going to take awhile."
Moccio said that public health inspector Gord Mitchell visited Herbie's on Monday
and was due to pay a second visit yesterday for a progress report on the store's
rodent-proofing efforts.
"We don't want to be seen as harassing the people," Moccio said. "We just want to
get updates and see how they are doing."
The Whig-Standard called Herbie's yesterday to ask when the store would reopen, but
a woman who answered the phone hung up on the reporter.
Michelle Lee, head of corporate relations for Katz Group Canada, which owns
Herbie's, told the Whig that she had nothing to add to the statement issued last
week by the company.
The statement said the company won't reopen the store "until we and the health
authority are completely satisfied that the problem has been completely eliminated."