About 30 per cent of basic foodstuffs such as bread, mealie-meal and sugar being sold in tuckshops and on the streets are underweight, the Consumer Protection Commission (CPC) has said.
The CPC conducted investigations in over five provinces across the country and found that certain products, despite being labelled with the correct weight, contained less than indicated on the packaging, and some products had expired.
The investigation established that soft drinks accounted for roughly 60 per cent of all expired goods. Mbare was identified as a key source of underweight products.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail, CPC chairperson Mthokozisi Nkosi said random checks were done on basic grocery items such as mealie meal, salt, rice and sugar. Said Nkosi:
It is estimated that such goods account for under 30 per cent of the total being sold. A standard loaf of bread is supposed to be 350 grammes or 700 grammes, and some shops were found selling bread not conforming to the statutory mass and were accordingly prosecuted.
Sugar, in particular the one written Star Sugar, was found to be short in mass, with a 2kg packet weighing 1,6kg.
The selling of underweight goods and measures is shameful, unethical and illegal.
Concerning expired products, the major ones found were beverages and some food items, with beverages accounting for over 60 per cent.
Nkosi said CPC has embarked on a nationwide blitz, working with Trade Measures, a department in the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, targeting retailers.
He revealed that in total, 1,903 retailers have since been prosecuted this year for violating consumer protection regulations, with 647 cases relating to quality offences. He added:
Investigations have indicated that the major culprits selling underweight and expired products are the small to medium enterprises, with big supermarket cases being marginal.
The bulk of the underweight products are not coming from established manufacturers, but information points to the fact that these are unscrupulous people buying products from manufacturers in the right quantities, repackaging them, mostly in some parts of Mbare, and selling to unsuspecting consumers…
Offenders found guilty are liable to a fine not exceeding Level Six or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year, or to both such fine and such imprisonment.
Nkosi said the Trade Measures department checks whether products being offered for sale are not short of the quantity required, declared or deceptively/misleadingly packaged to give the impression that the product is more than what is contained.
Earlier this month, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce urged members of the public to be vigilant and report all those found short-changing consumers to its offices or the CPC.
The Ministry of Industry and Commerce’s Trade Measures Department is located on the 13th Floor, Mkwati Building, Cnr 5th Street and Livingstone Avenue, Harare (Contact Numbers: +263 242 707 540/791 823).
The Consumer Protection Commission is at 17 J. Chinamano Ave, Motor Industry Pension Fund Building, Harare (Main Line: +2638677010042, Hotline numbers: +263 719 176 856/861/865 Call Centre: +2638677010043).
