Giant Rat Spotted at FamilyMart in the Shanghai Metro
By Bridget O'Donnell
A Shanghai branch of FamilyMart, the popular convenience store chain, has been closed after photos circulating online showed a rat in the shop's refrigerated goods aisle.
The photos, which first surfaced on May 22, showed a giant rat in the "ready meals" section of a Family Mart shop located in the Shanghai Metro.
The user who shared the photos said the rodent was spotted at around 7.30pm on Monday. The witness was grabbing a drink before making her way to the platform of West Nanjing Road Station on Line 2 when she spotted the rat.
A sign on the shop's door posted yesterday that it was closed for "renovations." The shop remains closed, with products removed from its shelves, and it's unclear when the convenience store will reopen.
Yesterday, pest control and local market supervision officials launched an inspection of the shop and authorities from the Patriotic Health Campaign Committee Office have ordered FamilyMart staff to disinfect the store. Market supervision officials also directed the store to destroy the contaminated food.
In response to the news, FamilyMart has announced that all the food in the shop has been removed and will be destroyed. They will also be renovating the shop to add rat-proof ceilings and enhance wire and pipe protection.
Rats weren’t FamilyMart’s only pest problem this week. Yesterday a woman found a moth in her FamilyMart boxed salad:
The female customer shared photos of her salad, which was purchased for lunch at a shop near Lujiabang Road Metro station.
After she asked for a refund, FamilyMart paid her double compensation and also provided a free cup of coffee. FamilyMart said that the woman was "satisfied" with the resolution.
This isn't the first time pests have been spotted at a popular Shanghai establishment. In 2016, a diner uploaded a video of a rat falling on his table at Wagas.
[Images via Netease, Shanghai Daily]
To watch a rat fall on a Wagas diner's table, click "Read more" below.