Raids on supermarkets to detect short weight

The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) jointly with the Weights and Measures Department (WMD) will conduct raids on all supermarkets and luxury shopping malls to verify if the weight of all packed goods on sale tallies with weight displayed on such packs , from this week onwards.

This follows the rise in consumer complaints over the weight of packaged items. Instructions have been issued by the Internal Trade Ministry to raid all mega and small shopping malls to check if their customers are being cheated by way of weight of goods sold at these establishments. Lightning raids will be carried out by the Weights and Measures Department island wide, a spokesman for the ministry said.

Another complaint by consumers have been about tampered scales. Internal Trade and Cooperatives Minister Johnston Fernando directed the CAA and WMD to ascertain the truth about these complaints after checking all business centres where scales are being used. The CAA and WMD have also seized a large number of rice packets that were short in weight to that displayed in the packet.

In addition, a number of consumer items which were to be distributed island wide were taken into custody after verifying that they were short in weight, Internal Trade Ministry sources said.