Revealed: the meaning behind this little-known supermarket symbol
There’s a little-known code found on common supermarket products that you may not have noticed before. The code was exposed by a very cross Woolworths customer who contacted news.com.au.
The woman had bought a 500g package of beef mince, but when she weighed the meat on her kitchen scales at home, she discovered a big problem – the mince actually weighed just 262g.
She vented on Facebook. “Seriously Woolworths … I have been buying this mince like this for a while, and not cheap due to trying to cut out fat. I weighed the meat today and there is less than 300 grams in a supposed 500g pack!” she wrote. “And yes my scales are fine. I use them daily by (the) way. How many people are you [Woolworths] ripping off (by) including the packaging weight?”
The packaging has a tiny “e” symbol next to the weight marked on the package. It stands for estimate and means the weight doesn’t necessarily have to be the same on the packet, although it’s meant to be close.
The supermarket says it’s not to blame for the error, but a Woolworths spokesperson told news.com.au the company took the woman’s claim seriously.
“We want our customers to shop with the confidence they’re getting what they’re paying for,” the spokesperson said.
“We’re aware of the customer’s claim and have been looking into it with our meat production partner.
“We have a range of checks and balances in place throughout production to help ensure our products comply with trade measurement.”
The spokesperson said any customers concerned about the weight of a product should return it for a refund.
Yet another rip-off from our corporate sector.