During the holiday season, the scams continue. This time, large groups are concerned and 10 star Christmas products are singled out.
The holidays are an opportunity to gather around a table, refined and delicate dishes ready to be tasted. Sweet log, roast turkey or lumpfish eggs… These products are the stars of Christmas. However, Foodwatch NGO just pinned them. The reason ? It would be a “christmas scam“. According to the association, “each (year), these are the same types of scams coming backon the supermarket shelves.
While supermarket shelves are filled with gifts, foie gras, champagne and other flagship New Year’s Eve products, 10 dishes have been pinned. The “vacuum” in the products, also called “shrinkflation” or masked inflation, but also inflated prices especially for the end of year celebrations and finally packaging that oversells the capacity or products containing active ingredients dangerous for the health. Here are a few featured products:
- Roast turkey with morel stuffing from Maître Coq which contains only 0.9% mushrooms.
- The box of lumpfish eggs from the Carrefour Extra brand, “Sustainable fishing” label, contains five additives, including the E150D dye, considered carcinogenic
- The 25g jar of Guérande fleur de sel from the Larnaudie brand, sold for €2.99, i.e. 120 euros per kilo
- The Signature Grand chocolate log from Nestlé sold at 17.48 euros per kilo at Auchan and at 80% “empty”
- Sliced smoked salmon with dill that reach the 60% vacuum, priced at €58.40 the kilo.
In the boxes of Pyrenean chocolates from the Lindt brand, 6 pieces out of 30 are missingdetails Audrey Morice in charge of campaigns at Foodwatch “i.e. a 20% drop while the price per kilo increased by 18% to reach 34.23 euros“. Contacted by The Parisian, Nestlé, Larnaudie but also Lindt did not respond.
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Hidden inflation hits supermarket shelves
The technique of masked inflation or “shrinkflation” in English, whose verb “shrink”, means “to shrink”, consists in reduce product weight while hiding price increases. A legal practice, but of which the consumer must be clearly informed on the label. On September 2, the NGO Foodwatch already accused 6 brands of inflating prices, while lowering quantities.
Today, nearly 2% of products on the shelves in supermarkets suffered hidden inflation, the HuffingtonPost reported at the time.