MARGATE, FL. Back in March 2026, state inspectors walked into La Super Markette on a routine check and found the Broward County supermarket open for business without a valid food permit, a finding that anchors a 10-violation inspection report dated March 2, 2026.
The inspection was conducted by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. It was classified as an "Operating Without a Valid Food Permit" visit, meaning the store's permit status was already a known concern before inspectors arrived.
What Inspectors Found
The single priority violation documented in the meat department was specific: inspectors observed a large amount of single-use trays stored above the meat preparation area, removed from their protective plastic with no protection from contamination. Single-use trays that contact food must be protected from contamination before they touch it.
In the same department, fish was found thawing on ice in the seafood display case while still sealed inside reduced oxygen packaging. The inspector noted all ROP fish was opened during the visit, correcting the issue on the spot.
A food employee in the meat department was not wearing a hair restraint. The employee put on a hairnet during the inspection.
The violations extended to the store's management structure. The person in charge could not correctly answer questions related to employee health policy, a foundational requirement for any food establishment. Inspectors also found that the person in charge was unable to confirm that food employees had been informed, in a verifiable way, of their obligation to report illness or symptoms of diseases transmissible through food. A guidance document was provided at the time of inspection.
There were no written procedures for responding to a vomit or diarrheal event anywhere in the store.
Outside, the green dumpster behind the establishment had its lid open. The lid was closed during the inspection. In the produce cooler backroom, dust had accumulated on a vent. A thermometer on the open air cooler near the meat display case was not operating.
What These Violations Mean
The cluster of management failures documented at La Super Markette in March is the kind of pattern that concerns food safety officials more than a single isolated problem. When a person in charge cannot answer basic questions about employee illness policy, it signals that the systems meant to prevent sick workers from handling food are not functioning.
That matters because foodborne illness outbreaks are frequently traced to employees who worked while sick. A store that cannot verify its workers know they are required to report symptoms of norovirus, hepatitis A, or salmonella has removed one of the most critical barriers between contaminated food and a shopping cart.
The absence of written vomit and diarrhea cleanup procedures is directly connected. Norovirus, one of the most common causes of foodborne illness, spreads aggressively through improperly cleaned contamination events. Without written procedures, a staff member who encounters such an event has no documented protocol to follow.
The priority violation involving single-use trays stored unprotected above the meat preparation area carries a different risk. Trays that contact raw meat must arrive at that surface clean. Storing them unprotected above the prep area exposes them to drips, debris, and airborne contamination before they ever touch a product. That finding was not listed as corrected on site.
The Permit Problem
Operating without a valid food permit is not a paperwork technicality. Under Florida Statute 500.12, a food establishment permit is the state's mechanism for ensuring a facility has met baseline requirements before it handles food sold to the public. La Super Markette was open and operating when inspectors arrived without a valid 2027 permit in place.
The inspection type itself, designated as an "Operating Without a Valid Food Permit" inspection, indicates the permit lapse was the trigger for the visit. The store was serving customers while that authorization was absent.
The Longer Record
The data available for this inspection does not include a prior inspection count for La Super Markette, which limits how fully the March 2026 findings can be placed in historical context. What the record does show is that none of the 10 violations documented were marked as repeats, meaning inspectors did not flag these as problems carried over from a previous visit.
That is a notable distinction. No repeats means the management failures around employee illness reporting and the unprotected single-use trays above the meat prep area were not flagged as recurring issues from prior inspections. Whether that reflects an improving record or a gap in inspection frequency is a question the available data does not answer.
What the March 2, 2026 inspection does establish is that at the time of the visit, the store's person in charge could not demonstrate a working knowledge of employee health requirements, no written cleanup procedures for contamination events existed, and a large quantity of single-use food contact materials were stored without protection above a raw meat preparation surface. That last violation was not listed as corrected on site.