Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport officials tell Channel 2 Action News they are enhancing the way they inspect restaurants inside the airport after a man showed Channel 2 Action News a sandwich he purchased from an airport vendor had maggots.
The passenger told Channel 2's Amy Napier Viteri he bought a sandwich at an airport restaurant Wednesday morning. When he opened it he said he was stunned to find maggots on it.
Joel Woloshuk says he got out his phone and recorded video of the bugs crawling on his focaccia sandwich after boarding a flight to Miami for work Wednesday morning.
The video shows maggots crawling in and on the food he bought at the Café Intermezzo franchise location inside Terminal B at Hartsfield-Jackson.
"What I thought was parmesan and the parmesan began to move," Woloshuk told Viteri.
Woloshuk kept the sandwich and showed Channel 2 Action News the maggots when he got back to Atlanta Wednesday night.
He said he called the restaurant and asked to meet with a manager but no one was available that night.
"This is not wilted tomato; this isn't a moldy piece of bread. These are maggots," Woloshuk said.
Viteri reached out to Café Intermezzo and spoke with its president by phone, who said they truly regret the isolated incident occurred.
In a statement he said the problem "could not have been generated on our premises."
He said the problem started at its bread supplier with whom it has cut ties.
"All products from the vendor were removed. Not a single crumb or slice of bread from the vendor remains in the facility," the statement said.
That supplier told Viteri by phone it doesn't believe the problem started in its facility, which a Department of Agriculture inspector visited late last week.
The bakery said at this point it's still supplying other airport vendors. In a statement, the airport told Channel 2 Action News it's "awaiting results of the investigation to determine further action."
Woloshuk said a restaurant manager offered him a refund, which he declined. He said he just wants to be sure this won't happen to anyone else.
"My intent is my fellow traveler. I'm in this airport weekly and it makes me pretty angry," Woloshuk said.
Cafe Intermezzo and airport officials told Viteri they take food safety and cleanliness very seriously.
The Department of Aviation does its own inspections of concessions monthly and an airport spokesperson told Viteri starting Friday, it's giving managers of every airport restaurant ultra violet inspection lights so they can independently inspect food shipments.
The Department of Aviation will also start touring food suppliers in the metro area and report any violations to the corresponding authority.
The Clayton County Board of Health told Viteri Tuesday it found no citable violation at the franchise location when they inspected it Friday based on the complaint.
