AVON PARK, FL. State inspectors visiting Market 27 at 2951 US Hwy 27 N on April 22 found food being sold from unapproved or unknown sources, a violation that means there is no way to trace where that food came from if a customer gets sick.
That was one of six high-severity violations documented that day. The facility was not closed.
What Inspectors Found
The six violations documented on April 22 covered nearly every stage of food handling. Food contact surfaces were not properly cleaned or sanitized, meaning cutting boards, prep surfaces, or utensils used to prepare one item could carry bacteria directly to the next.
Employees were found to be washing their hands inadequately. Food was not being cooked to required minimum temperatures. Toxic substances were improperly identified, stored, or used somewhere in the facility.
No person in charge was present or performing supervisory duties during the inspection.
What These Violations Mean
The unapproved food source violation is the one with the longest reach. When food bypasses USDA or FDA inspection channels, there is no supply chain record and no way to identify the origin if a customer develops Listeria, Salmonella, or another foodborne illness. An outbreak investigation starts by tracing food back to its source. Without that trail, it stops.
Undercooking compounds that risk directly. Salmonella in poultry survives below 165 degrees Fahrenheit. If the food arriving at Market 27 came from an unverified source and was then undercooked, those two violations work together in a way that neither does alone.
Improperly sanitized food contact surfaces add a third pathway. Bacteria transferred from a contaminated cutting board to ready-to-eat food does not require the customer to consume an undercooked item. It requires only that the surface touched one thing and then another.
The inadequate handwashing citation closes the circle. Inspectors consider improper handwashing the single most significant factor in spreading foodborne illness, because hands move between raw product, surfaces, equipment, and plated food constantly throughout a shift. The absence of a person in charge during the inspection means none of these practices had active oversight on that day.
The Pattern
April 22 was not a bad day at an otherwise clean facility. It was the eighth consecutive inspection in the available record to produce high-severity violations at Market 27.
State records show 23 inspections on file for this location, with 155 total violations documented across that history. The facility has never been emergency-closed.
The most recent inspections tell a consistent story. In October 2025, inspectors cited five high-severity and one intermediate violation. In December 2024, the count reached seven high-severity and three intermediate violations. In October 2023, the same tally as April 2026: six high-severity violations.
The Longer Record
Market 27: High-Severity Violations by Inspection
The July 2022 inspection produced eight high-severity violations, the highest single-visit count in the available record. The facility was not closed then, either.
What the record shows is not a facility that slipped once or struggled through a difficult stretch. It is a facility that has produced high-severity violations at every documented inspection for at least four years, across categories including food sourcing, temperature control, sanitation, and employee hygiene.
The April 2026 inspection added food from unapproved sources and toxic substance mishandling to a list that already included inadequate handwashing, uncooked food, unsanitary surfaces, and no manager on duty.
After all six violations were documented on April 22, Market 27 remained open.