Georgia fines supermarket chain after cat filmed feasting in deli section

Georgia’s National Food Agency has fined the owner of the Libre supermarket chain after a viral video showed a cat helping itself to a feast inside a store’s deli section.

The footage, which quickly spread across social media, captured the feline perched inside a refrigerated display case, casually nibbling on slices of ham before moving on to sausages as if sampling the menu. The scene unfolded uninterrupted, with no employees or customers appearing to intervene, News.Az reports, citing News Georgia.

The video sparked widespread online reaction and soon attracted the attention of food safety authorities. The agency said it identified the store in Tbilisi featured in the clip and launched an unscheduled inspection.

Inspectors subsequently uncovered what the agency described as “critical violations” of sanitary regulations, along with expired food products being offered for sale.

As a result, the supermarket operator was fined 5,000 lari ($1,870), while part of the store’s food preparation operations was temporarily suspended.

The expired goods were sealed off and will be destroyed under the agency’s supervision.

The incident also sparked renewed discussion online about food safety standards and hygiene controls in retail chains.

The National Food Agency urged consumers to pay close attention to product labelling, storage conditions and sales practices, and encouraged the public to report violations via the hotline of Georgia’s Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture.

News.Az