Offers in “max” format or in batches are pinpointed by a survey by the Foodwatch association unveiled this Wednesday, April 26. They would be promoted as bargains, but the prices per kilo reveal higher tariffs.
Buy more to earn nothing? The Foodwatch association (which fights for more transparency in the food industry and distribution) alerts this Wednesday, April 26 to the misleading practices of large retailers. Food offers sold in “family” format or in batches are flourishing on supermarket shelves. But by checking the labels on the shelves, the prices per kilo of these large formats turn out to be more expensive for certain products than the same product in standard packaging.
The survey cites major brand products deliberately promoted in this type of large format batches, even though they are more expensive items: “The price per kilo of Pepito Lu biscuits increases by almost 25% when they are sold in packs of two, slices of Gouda at Cora are 28% more expensive per kilo when the pack goes from 8 slices to 14 in maxi format”.
This practice is denounced by the association: “With galloping inflation, many consumers wishing to save money are turning to what they think are bargains”. To carry out this survey, Foodwatch “checked in the ‘drives’ and the shelves of the main retail chains” to carry out an inventory of products concerned by this practice. The brands Pepsi, Lustucru, Cora, Harry’s, Joker, D’Aucy, Nesquik, Milka, Lu, Pasquier and Fleury Michon are singled out by the investigation.
The president of System U, Dominique Schelcher, reacted this Wednesday April 26 on France 2 by ensuring that “these are not scams but rather errors”. And to regret the association’s way of doing things: “To pillory a sign because we have spotted a product at the other end of France, it’s a particular method”.
Foodwatch has launched a petition which will be “sent every day with the new signatures by e-mail” to Bruno Le Maire, Minister of Economy and Finance. In September 2022, the association denounced another marketing practice: “shrinkflation”. This masks rising product prices by reducing quantities without changing the size of the package. It is legal provided that the mention of the weight of the foodstuff is modified. For Foodwatch, this misleads the consumer: “These abuses should be prohibited or strictly regulated as promotions are. With consumers, we are therefore calling on the government.”
