Complaint Inspection Finds No Violations at KFC Kahului

No citations were issued following a complaint inspection of the KFC restaurant located at 144 Wākea Avenue in Kahului, Maui.

A Department of Health inspector from the Maui Sanitation Branch conducted the inspection at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, March 20, 2018 as a result of an anonymous complaint containing a video showing two men in the restaurant parking lot at the back of a car with the hatchback open.

The video, which was posted to social media, shows one man taking two five-gallon buckets full of what appears to be animal meat into the back door of the KFC.

According to a summary of the investigation, the other man is observed staying at the car, filling a clear bag with what appears to be dark animal organs, and then is seen walking into the back door of of the KFC.

This prompted comments and questions over sanitation practices and the source of food products being brought into the facility.

According to officials with the state Department of Health, the inspector met with the manager at KFC Kahului and showed her the video. Health officials say the manager stated that she wasn’t on duty at time of incident but confirmed that raw pork was delivered there and placed in the walk-in freezer to be stored until an employee planned to take it home at end of their shift.

The manager told health officials that the pork was not intended to be served to the public.

The Health Inspector informed the food establishment manager that food from unapproved sources (including food for personal use) cannot be served to the public nor stored along-side food intended for the public. This is a food safety code violation; however, at the time of the inspection, no unapproved food was observed, therefore no violations were cited.

The DOH notified the owner of Kazi Foods Corporation of Hawaiʻi, the franchisee of KFC restaurants in Hawaiʻi, about the video and its posting on Facebook.

Over a 24 hour period a Facbook re-post of the video had generated 3,209 shares, nearly 600 reactions and 138,000 views since it was published on Tuesday afternoon. The individual who posted the video wrote that the video was taken two weeks ago by a relative.