Italian food safety raids close stores and seize over 500 kg of unsafe food

Police and health inspectors carried out a series of food‑safety operations in several Italian cities. In Ostia, a minimarket at Lido Centro was shut down after inspectors found rodent droppings, insect larvae and expired products on the shelves. In Rome, a pub in Casalotti was closed for rat excrement in the kitchen and a meat‑shop was fined for unsanitary conditions.

In the Calabria town of Soverato, the Carabinieri’s anti‑fraud and health unit seized 521 kg of meat, fish, dairy and other products that were stored in a malfunctioning refrigerator and contaminated by waste. The supermarket’s meat department was suspended and the owner was referred to the judiciary. A similar inspection in Catania’s beach stalls on Viale Kennedy uncovered five kilograms of untraceable animal food, a black‑market worker and structural violations, resulting in fines of about €24,000.

Across the operations, authorities imposed administrative fines, ordered the suspension of meat departments, detained illegal workers and filed criminal complaints, aiming to protect public health and enforce hygiene standards.