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New Zealand Food Safety food compliance officers, from the Ministry of Primary Industries, were working with the store on theproblem and helping it solve the situation after it received a complaint.
The shopper, who didn’t want to be named, said she had seen pigeons and other birds pecking holes in produce and clambering over food at Grey Lynn Woolworths multiple times in the past year, and as recently as last week.
“It’s bloody filthy,” she told the Herald.
“I mean, it’s pretty unsavoury. There are hygiene issues here. I think Countdown [Woolworths] needs a bloody stick over the knuckles, frankly.”
Pest controller Rentokil lists several diseases and other health risks pigeons and other birds can carry on its website, naming salmonella, Escherichia coli [E.Coli], fungal infections and bird mites.
“Some of the diseases carried by pigeons and gulls could make you seriously ill. It is important to act at the first sign of a bird infestation to avoid these associated health risks,” Rentokil said.
The shopper who spotted this pigeon roosting on a supermarket shelf called it "bloody filthy".
The shopper who approached the Herald, inspired by recent reports of mice and rats at Woolworth stores in Dunedin and Auckland, said she had complained directly to the company and the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI).
“I also know I am not the only person that has complained about it. Before Christmas, [I saw] the pigeons getting into the self-serve nut area,” she said.
“I’ve also seen the pigeons nesting in the bread crumb [shelf], breaking open bread crumb bags and eating off the shelf.”
Deputy director-general of New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS) Vincent Arbuckle confirmed the agency had received a complaint relating to birds at this store and said officers were working with the business on what the problem is, if any, as they do after any complaints are laid.
“If there is a problem, the food business is supported to make changes. If the food business does not put in place necessary corrective actions, NZFS can use enforcement tools to correct the situation,” Arbuckle said.
“Different tools can be used to reflect the situation and can include closure of a food business, preventing the sale of food, requiring improvements to a food business and prosecution.”
Arbuckle reiterated some of the risks of pigeons and outlined why supermarkets were at risk from infestations.
“Pests such as birds ... can also contaminate our food with foreign matter such as hair, fur, droppings/urine, eggs and dead bodies.
A pigeon spotted roosting on a shelf at Grey Lynn Woolworths, formally Countdown, in Auckland in November 2023, coming amid reports of mouse and rat infestations at the supermarket's other stores.
“Food businesses that manufacture, prepare, handle or distribute food provide ideal conditions for pests to live and multiply (which include food, warmth, shelter and protection).
“If food businesses don’t control and prevent pests from their sites/shops, it can lead to a pest infestation and risks to food safety.”
The disaffected shopper said: “When I heard about these rats and mice, I wondered if there was an issue across the whole company; that they [may be] reluctant to use pest control.
“I said [to the store manager], ‘look, I am sick of seeing birds pecking at bread bags’. I check the bread bags when I buy them to see that there are not any holes in them.”
Woolworths confirmed it was aware of the pigeon issue at the Grey Lynn store, had been in contact with MPI about it, and had been working with its pest control contractor, Rentokil.
“We take pest control seriously and apologise to our customers for any distress or inconvenience that this issue may have caused them,” a spokeswoman said.
“Birds are a pest in food environments and while it is normal for them to attempt to enter food premises with customers, it’s our responsibility to do everything possible to keep them out and remove them when they do enter.”
She said the store had put up netting and plastic flaps over doors to keep pigeons out, was using “bird mist” to deter them, doing daily deep cleaning to remove food remnants that could attract birds and had weekly visits from Renotkil.
“Having safe and hygienic stores is important to us and if customers do see a bird or another pest in one of our stores, we’d ask them to let our team know immediately.”
